China’s steel mill profitability has climbed to the highest since August, according to data from consultancy Mysteel, although questions remain over how long the improvement can last. Some 64% of mills are profitable, Mysteel said in a weekly survey of 247 plants. That’s only the second time those levels have been exceeded since October 2024. The improving outlook in the world’s biggest steel mark...
China’s steel mill profitability has climbed to the highest since August, according to data from consultancy Mysteel, although questions remain over how long the improvement can last. Some 64% of mills are profitable, Mysteel said in a weekly survey of 247 plants. That’s only the second time those levels have been exceeded since October 2024. The improving outlook in the world’s biggest steel market is being driven by solid downstream consumption, constrained supply due to environmental curbs and mill maintenance, and strengthening exports since April as overseas steel mills raised prices, according to Mysteel. The rebound marks a rare bright spot for China’s steel sector, which has struggled with weak domestic demand, oversupply and persistent margin pressure over the past years. Still, analysts cautioned that the recovery may prove short-lived. “It will not last too long, because fundamentally it is being driven by the domestic versus overseas price gap and a mismatch in supply and demand, rather than by genuinely booming demand pushing profits higher,” said Steven Yu , a researcher at Mysteel. Weak demand will keep margins at steel mills suppressed through most of 2026, HSBC Holdings Plc analysts said in a research note on Thursday. “Policy-led supply discipline may stabilize margins by late 2026, but enforcement slippage could push back the inflection,” they said. Iron ore prices , meanwhile, have remained supported amid resilient steel production levels. They have also been propped up by higher freight costs due to the conflict in the Middle East. Futures fell 0.9% to $109.60 a ton in Singapore as of 11:12 a.m. local time, extending its retreat from a 19-month high reached earlier this week. Yuan-priced futures on the Dalian Exchange and Shanghai steel contracts also dropped. Separately, dry bulk freight rates — heavily anchored to the iron ore market — rose to the highest since December 2023, according to the Baltic Dry Exchange reading in London on Thursday.
Shares of Ondas (NASDAQ: ONDS) rocketed higher on Thursday after the defense technology provider reported staggering sales growth. Image source: Getty Images. Ondas' revenue rose more than 10-fold year over year to $50.1 million in the first quarter. The 1,065% gains were fueled by strong sales of the company's counter- drone systems. Continue reading
Shares of Ondas (NASDAQ: ONDS) rocketed higher on Thursday after the defense technology provider reported staggering sales growth. Image source: Getty Images. Ondas' revenue rose more than 10-fold year over year to $50.1 million in the first quarter. The 1,065% gains were fueled by strong sales of the company's counter- drone systems. Continue reading
Hong Kong’s privacy watchdog has condemned the owner of an education platform for paying a ransom to hackers who stole individuals’ personal data across 9,000 institutions worldwide, arguing that the money should have been spent on strengthening cybersecurity. Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data Ada Chung Lai-ling on Friday also questioned whether the hackers had truly returned the data stolen ...
Hong Kong’s privacy watchdog has condemned the owner of an education platform for paying a ransom to hackers who stole individuals’ personal data across 9,000 institutions worldwide, arguing that the money should have been spent on strengthening cybersecurity. Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data Ada Chung Lai-ling on Friday also questioned whether the hackers had truly returned the data stolen from Canvas and urged affected users to remain alert to suspicious calls or messages claiming to be...