Recently, China-US economic and trade consultations have achieved preliminary results, bringing positive signals to the global market. At the same time, the Executive Meeting of the State Council of China (Standing Meeting) made a number of important arrangements, involving steel, infrastructure construction, real estate and other fields.

Steel futures market adjustment
Since the close of trading on May 19, the price limit for rebar and hot-rolled coil futures (contract 2606-2702) has been adjusted to 5%, and the hedging and general position margin ratios have been 6% and 7% respectively. The price limit of stainless steel futures for the same contract is 6%, and the hedging and general position margin ratios are 7% and 8% respectively.

Steel industry policies and corporate dynamics
Luo Tiejun, member of the Standing Committee and Vice Chairman of the Party Committee of the China Iron and Steel Industry Association (China Iron and Steel Association), said that the Iron and Steel Association and the Scrap Steel Association have sorted out the tax invoice issues in the scrap steel industry through corporate surveys and discussions, and put forward policy recommendations, including "promoting the invoicing of production and waste enterprises, improving the reverse invoicing mechanism and increasing the VAT refund ratio."

Valin Liangang, a subsidiary of Valin Iron and Steel, plans to upgrade the No. 7 blast furnace and sintering supporting system of the ironmaking plant. It is expected to suspend production for 65 days in late December 2026, which will reduce the production of molten iron by approximately 600,000 tons, mainly affecting the supply in the first quarter of 2027.

On May 15, the 1350mm vertical continuous hot-dip galvanizing production line upgrade project for high-end home appliance panels in Guan County, Shandong Province, built by Huangshi Shanli Technology Co., Ltd., was successfully put into operation, which will increase local high-end plate production capacity.

Construction machinery and real estate market
Since May, the domestic excavator market has shown a concentrated price increase trend. Leading companies such as Sany Heavy Industry, Xugong Machinery, Liugong, Zoomlion, and Shantui Co., Ltd. have issued price adjustment notices, driving up the overall market price.

The national housing "replacement of old with new" policy continues to be implemented. According to statistics from the China Index Research Institute, more than 40 related policies have been introduced this year. By motivating enterprises and residents to participate, this model will continue to be upgraded, and more cities may learn from it in the future.

Shenzhen plans to build 30,000 affordable housing units and supply 40,000 units in 2026, and promote "good house" pilots, urban village renovation and complete community construction.

International Market and Trade Trends
India’s Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (ICBITC) has revised tariffs on gold, silver, palm oil and soybean oil. The gold tariff is priced at US$1,508/10 grams, silver is US$2,810/kg, palm oil crude oil is US$1,205/ton, and soybean oil crude oil is US$1,256/ton.

The UAE East-West Oil Pipeline is expected to be operational in 2027. After the completion of the project, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) will double its export capacity through Fujairah Port, further promoting the Middle East's energy export layout.