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The estimated daily national output of crude steel is 1.9327 million tons in late January. The overall estimated output of crude steel for the period is 21.2592 million tons, with a daily average of 1.9327 million tons; this represents a 0.17% increase compared to the middle of the month. In January, the country’s total crude steel production was 60.0119 million tons, with an average daily production of 1.9359 million tons. This represented a decrease of 35,300 tons on a month-on-month basis, or 1.79% less. Entering January, market demand continued to decline, and steel mills scheduled their annual inspections at that time; as a result, overall crude steel production dropped in January. However, with price rebounds toward the end of the month, steel mills’ profits began to recover, and some of them resumed production, leading to an increase in domestic crude steel production in the latter part of the month. Affected by the Spring Festival holiday, China’s crude steel production is expected to continue declining in February. The steel PMI reached a new high in 9 months. As supply-side reforms gain momentum, the Steel Logistics Committee of the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing released the steel industry PMI index on February 1. The steel PMI in January continued its upward trend from the previous month, rising by 6.1 percentage points to 46.7%, marking the highest level in nearly 9 months. However, in reality, the steel industry’s PMI index has remained below the 50% threshold marking expansion and contraction for 21 consecutive months, indicating that the industry’s performance remains weak on a long-term basis. The real estate market had a strong start in 2016. On February 1, the Price Index for 100 cities released by the China Index Academy (hereinafter referred to as CIA) showed that in January 2016, the average price of new residential properties in 100 cities across the country was 11,026 yuan per square meter, representing a 0.42% increase on a month-on-month basis. This increase was 0.32 percentage points lower than that seen in December 2015. Overall, the price index for 100 cities in January saw continued increases on a month-on-month and year-on-year basis, though the month-on-month increase slowed down while the year-on-year increase continued to rise. Source: Bugu Information