Morning Reading: Two Departments Take Action to Address Unregulated Price Competition, Black Commodity Futures Turn Positive in Overnight Trading

　　◎The National Development and Reform Commission and the State Administration for Market Regulation have jointly issued the "Announcement on Addressing Price Disorderly Competition and Maintaining a Sound Market Pricing Order." The Announcement highlights that, for key industries where price disorderly competition is particularly prominent, relevant institutions such as industry associations will be guided to conduct research and assess the average industry costs, providing operators with valuable references for setting reasonable prices.

　　◎ On October 9, the Ministry of Commerce and the General Administration of Customs jointly issued four announcements, implementing export controls on related items such as superhard materials, certain rare earth equipment and raw materials, selected medium- and heavy-grade rare earths, lithium batteries, and synthetic graphite anode materials.

　　◎A survey of 91 blast furnace steel plants nationwide shows that the average tax-inclusive cost of threaded steel at the end of September was RMB 3,106 per ton, up by RMB 37 per ton from the previous month, resulting in a loss of RMB 60 per ton. Details >>

　　◎ This week, supply of the five major steel products reached 8.6331 million tons, a decrease of 37,600 tons compared to the previous week, representing a decline of 0.4%. Total inventory stood at 16.0072 million tons, increasing by 1.2786 million tons from the prior week, reflecting an 8.7% rise. Weekly consumption totaled 7.5143 million tons, with construction material consumption down 32.8% week-on-week and plate product consumption declining by 7.8% compared to the previous week.

　　◎ According to the latest data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, in the first eight months of 2025, the added value of China's industrial SMEs above designated size increased by 7.6% year-on-year, a growth rate 3.3 percentage points higher than that of large enterprises. In August, the export index for SMEs stood at 51.9%, marking the 17th consecutive month in the expansion range.

　　◎The Ministry of Water Resources and the China Meteorological Administration have jointly issued a Blue Alert for Mountain Flood Disaster. It is forecasted that from 20:00 on October 9 to 20:00 on October 10, localized mountain flood disasters may occur in western Shanxi, northeastern Shaanxi, southeastern Gansu, and other areas (Blue Alert).

　　◎ New York Fed President Williams clearly stated his support for further interest rate cuts within 2025 to address the potential risk of a sharp slowdown in the labor market.

　　◎ The European Central Bank held interest rates steady in September and even delivered a cautiously optimistic assessment of the Eurozone economy, signaling that the threshold for further policy easing remains high.

　　On October 9, local time, the U.S. Republican Party's proposed bill to end the U.S. government shutdown failed to secure enough votes in the Senate and was ultimately rejected.

　　◎ On October 9, national major port iron ore transactions totaled 980,000 tons, an increase of 397.5% from the previous day; meanwhile, mainstream trading companies reported construction steel transactions totaling 119,900 tons, up 49% compared to the prior day.

　　◎ This week, the comparable inventory of steel billets at Tangshan's major warehouses and ports reached 1.3229 million tons, an increase of 75,800 tons compared to the previous week.

　　◎ This week, the average capacity utilization rate of the 523 sampled coking coal mines was 81.9%, down 4.6% from the previous week. Daily raw coal production averaged 1.839 million tons, a decrease of 103,000 tons compared to the prior week. Meanwhile, raw coal inventory stood at 4.464 million tons, up by 25,000 tons from the previous week. Daily production of refined coal reached 752,000 tons, down 22,000 tons from the previous week, while refined coal inventory increased to 1.959 million tons, an increase of 43,000 tons over the prior week.

　　◎ This week, the average capacity utilization rate of 90 independent electric arc furnace steel plants nationwide was 51.07%, up 0.23 percentage points from the previous week and 3.01 percentage points year-on-year. Meanwhile, the average operating rate reached 67.06%, increasing by 1.19 percentage points week-on-week and 1.8 percentage points year-on-year.

　　◎ On October 9, the average cost for 76 independent electric arc furnace construction steel plants was RMB 3,314 per ton, down by RMB 2 per ton compared to before the holiday. Meanwhile, the average profit margin remained at a loss of RMB 147 per ton, with valley-time electricity profits also incurring a loss of RMB 49 per ton.

　　◎ Donghai Special Steel's small-diameter round steel bars (Ф40-85mm) ceased production on October 3, with the resumption date to be announced separately. This is expected to impact daily production of high-quality special steel bars by approximately 3,500 tons.

　　◎ The 650mm strip steel rolling line at Qinhuangdao Hongxing Steel is scheduled to begin a planned shutdown for maintenance on October 18, with an estimated maintenance period of 35 days. This will impact the daily average production of hot-rolled strip steel by approximately 5,500 tons.

　　◎ According to the Ministry of Emergency Management, in accordance with the 2025 annual central safety production assessment and inspection plan, 22 central safety production assessment and inspection teams will successively arrive in 31 provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the central government, and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps in November to carry out the annual assessment and inspection.

　　◎ According to an incomplete compilation by Mysteel, nine steel projects commenced construction or began production in September 2025. Among them, projects such as Liaoning Tongxin Industrial have started construction, while projects including Ansteel, Henan Iron & Steel Group, and Guangfu Group have entered production. For more details >>

　　◎ According to incomplete statistics from Mysteel, from January to September 2025, the China Trade Remedy Information Network has successively announced over 120 anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigations or rulings initiated by foreign countries against Chinese steel products. Details >>

　　◎ Shanmei Group Shenmu Hongliulin Mining Co., Ltd., with an approved production capacity of 18 million tons/year, has fully resumed operations as of October 9.

　　◎Sales of China's Top 100 Real Estate Companies Rebounded Month-on-Month in September. According to data from the China Index Academy, the total sales volume of the top 100 real estate firms increased by 11.9% month-on-month in September. Meanwhile, according to statistics from CRIC Research Center, these companies achieved a sales turnover of RMB 252.78 billion in September, representing a month-on-month growth of 22.1% and a year-on-year increase of 0.4%.

　　◎ The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, along with two other departments, has adjusted the technical requirements for the exemption of purchase tax on new energy vehicles. Specifically, the minimum pure electric range requirement for plug-in hybrid and range-extended models has been raised to 100 km.

　　◎ According to Mysteel statistics, as of October 9, 14 automakers have released their September sales figures for new energy vehicles. Year-on-year, 11 automakers reported an increase in September sales of new energy vehicles; month-on-month, 13 automakers saw growth in their September sales of new energy vehicles.