China is boosting domestic demand for stainless steel by extending and expanding its old-versus-new policy on large appliances and consumer goods, such as white goods.
A few days ago, the Chinese government announced the expansion of measures for the replacement of large appliances and the trade-in of consumer goods for 2025. This measure is aimed at further strengthening domestic demand for new appliances and vehicles.
This measure will therefore particularly benefit the automotive, household appliances, decoration, digital and construction industries, in which stainless steel is frequently used.
Analysts assume that the expansion and extension of the old-versus-new policy, which had already led to a year-on-year increase of over 21% in domestic Chinese stainless steel demand in 2024, should also increase demand by more than 9.9% in 2025.
EU steel lobby: Renewed calls for an immediate ban on scrap exports
In a letter to the European Commission, domestic steel and aluminium producers have once again called for restrictions on the export of ferrous and non-ferrous scrap from Europe. The EU Commission should use the full range of measures at its disposal to implement export restrictions on scrap immediately.