China: Construction steel demand to remain weak in Jul’26 amid seasonal slowdown

• July procurement expected to decline by 1.9% m-o-m
• Contractors keep inventories low amid uncertain demand outlook

China’s demand for construction steel is expected to remain weak in July 2026, as building industry activity is seen slowing due to the impact of nationwide high temperatures and frequent rains, according to the findings of Mysteel’s latest monthly survey.

The prediction is based on the actual volumes of construction steel products bought by domestic end-users in June and their purchase plans for these products this month.

Mysteel’s regular tracking of over 200 domestic construction enterprises showed that their total buying volume of steel products reached 6.47 million tonnes last month, edging down 0.3% from May. However, their actual procurement tonnage was 3.4% lower compared with their planned volume for June, suggesting weak end-user demand.

This month, the actual purchase volume among the sampled building contractors is estimated to reach 6.35 million tonnes, lower by 1.9% from that for June, according to the survey.

For July, the persistent high temperatures and frequent rainfall across most regions of China will continue to hamper outdoor construction. Apart from key projects and livelihood projects, the real estate sector remains in a downturn, and no notable improvement has been seen recently. These facts point to a continued weakness in demand for construction steel.

Given the market uncertainty ahead, Chinese building contractors are inclined to keep their steel inventories at low levels and procure materials based on actual project requirements.

Transactions of construction steel in the physical market have hovered low recently. During 1-15 July, the combined daily trading volume of rebar, wire rod and bar-in-coil among the 237 trading houses nationwide under Mysteel’s tracking registered 87,811 tonnes/day, falling by 3,744 t/d or 4.1% from the average for June.

China’s construction steel prices remain weak overall, with the national price of HRB400E 20mm dia rebar under Mysteel’s assessment standing at RMB 3,290/tonne ($486/t) including the 13% VAT on 15 July, slipping by RMB 10/t from the end of June.

Note: This article is published as part of a content exchange agreement between Mysteel Global and BigMint.