From the market data, many key indicators show a positive trend. In terms of output, in May, according to statistics, 67 key steel enterprises produced 35.46 million tons of crude steel, and the average daily output rebounded to 1.14 million tons (the average daily output in February, March and April was 1.15 million tons, 1.11 million tons and 1.11 million tons respectively). In late May, the average daily output jumped to 1.16 million tons, demonstrating that production vitality is steadily recovering. Steel prices also showed positive changes. At the end of May, the comprehensive price index of steel in the domestic market steadily rebounded to 98.14 from the lowest point of the year in mid-April of 95.01, and has been rising for six consecutive weeks; among them, the price indices of long products and plates were 103.66 and 97.09, respectively, up 3.03 points and 2.06 points from the end of April. The prices of 6.5mm common wire and 12mm rebar are 3496 yuan/ton and 3747 yuan/ton, respectively, up 170 yuan/ton and 193 yuan/ton from the end of April; the price of 6mm medium and thick plate is 4059 yuan/ton, and the prices of 0.5mm hot-rolled sheet and 0.5mm cold-rolled sheet are 4187 yuan/ton and 4461 yuan/ton, with an increase of 65-113 yuan/ton. The continuous rise in prices directly reflects the improvement of market supply and demand and the gradual increase in market confidence.

In the global trade pattern, although trade protectionism has been on the rise from time to time, steel companies and industry practitioners in various countries have taken positive actions and successfully explored new development paths. At the 2025 Asian Steel Trade Summit held on April 21-22, industry insiders shared valuable response strategies and cooperation opportunities.

In terms of capacity planning, many countries have shown great potential. Reza Zaer of Iran Steel Price Company revealed that Iran's steel production capacity is planned to reach 55 million tons in 2025. Iran's steel industry ranks second only to oil in its national economy. With the steady progress of the "Seventh Five-Year Development Plan", the Iranian government has vigorously provided tax incentives and regulatory support, fully promoted the development of special industries and actively expanded export areas. This not only creates good conditions for the take-off of Iran's steel industry itself, but also brings new opportunities for "capacity cooperation + resource complementarity" to global steel companies. India is also vigorously promoting the development of the steel industry. Its "National Steel Policy (2017)" sets a grand goal of achieving 300 million tons of production capacity by 2030. In recent years, the growth momentum of production and consumption in India's steel industry has been extremely strong. As India strides towards the goal of a GDP of US$5 trillion, its demand for steel will continue to rise, opening up broad development space for the international steel market.

In terms of trade strategy adjustments, companies are actively seeking change. Luo Jian, Chairman of Tianjin Nuogang Steel, proposed that enterprises can avoid over-reliance on a single country or region by carefully selecting and expanding export service countries, and give priority to regions that complement my country's steel production capacity advantages and can cooperate for a long time. For example, in the face of Vietnam's anti-dumping duties on Chinese hot-rolled coils, since its anti-dumping scope basically covers all types of hot coils, but the width is limited to less than 1880mm, enterprises can shift their business focus to the export of wide coils above 1880mm, thereby successfully opening up new market opportunities in a complex trade environment. In addition, enterprises can effectively enhance their competitiveness in the international market by improving the degree of product segmentation and deepening their cultivation of specific product areas.

Speaking of traders building overseas warehouses, Fu Tingtao, Vice Chairman of CNBM International Middle East and North Africa Company, said that building overseas warehouses has many significant advantages, such as avoiding sudden risks of transportation interruptions, being closer to market demand entities, meeting after-sales service requirements, and enhancing the overseas popularity of high-quality product brands. Most traders do not need to build warehouses by themselves, and can ensure safety with the help of overseas warehouses with state-owned backgrounds. This provides strong support for traders to expand their business in the international market and helps to stabilize and expand the scale of international steel trade.

In terms of corporate practice, some companies have successfully resisted market fluctuations by actively adjusting their strategies. Hu Yuxin, executive deputy general manager of Donggang, Malaysia, said that 92% of Donggang's steel is used for export, and by dispersing trade risks, it has not been affected by this round of trade war. SUMEET DWIVEDI, director of the purchasing department of Ajuma Steel Pipe Factory in the United Arab Emirates, said frankly that the company has switched from mainly making general materials to mainly making metal products, which not only has gained a higher product premium and been able to obtain tax rebates, but also stabilized customer resources by deepening the segmented product market. The successful experience of these companies provides valuable reference for other companies, fully proving that in a complex international market environment, companies can fully achieve stable development by actively adjusting their business structure and operating strategies.

In addition, the global steel industry has also made positive progress in technological innovation and sustainable development. More and more companies are increasing their investment in the research and development of green steel technology. For example, some companies are exploring green steel production technology represented by hydrogen-based smelting to reduce carbon emissions and achieve sustainable development. In terms of product innovation, new steel products are constantly coming out, meeting the higher requirements of emerging industries such as high-end manufacturing and new energy for steel performance, expanding the application field of steel, and opening up a new track for the future development of the steel industry.

Overall, the international steel market has actively broken through the difficulties. From the recovery of market data, to the new opportunities brought by the capacity planning of various countries, to the successful practice of enterprises in trade strategies and business structure adjustment, and the progress in technological innovation and sustainable development, all fully demonstrate the strong resilience and development potential of the industry. Looking ahead, as industry participants continue to actively respond to challenges and seize opportunities, the international steel market is expected to usher in a more prosperous development stage.