Steel production, both inside and outside Shijiazhuang, the capital city of China’s Hebei province which has been under lockdown since Jan. 7 due to a resurgence in COVID-19 cases, has so far not been affected by the latest restrictions, industry sources said. However, China’s steel demand ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays over Feb. 11-17 is expected to decline earlier than usual as workers in the manufacturing and construction sectors have been advised by the government to “return home during off-peak period”, way before the start of the holiday. Receive daily email alerts, subscriber notes & personalize your experience. Register Now According to market sources, Beijing has done this in a effort to reduce the possibility of a spike in COVID-19 cases during and after the Lunar New Year holidays. While China’s steel production has shown no signs of slowing, steel demand is expected to drop […]