Steel rebar futures rose to over CNY 3,290 per tonne, extending the rebound from the three-month low of CNY 3,129 touched on January 8th amid optimism that demand for major manufacturers and constructors will gain some traction this year. China exported 9.7 million tons of steel in December, a 26% surge from the previous year to cap off a record-setting year for steel exports, indicating that major Chinese mills continued to sell large volumes of metal to for foreign consumers despite the growing global protectionism rhetoric. In turn, leading appetite was supported by a surge in Chinese iron ore imports, indicating that mills expect high turnover. Signals pointing to a rebound in demand also included the sharp rebound in the NBS Construction PMI, which rose to 53.2 in December from the record low of 49.7 in November. Meanwhile, investors continued to gauge the impact of incoming economic support from Beijing this year, led by looser monetary policy and more deficit spending.
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