Chinese key steel mills held 14.64 million tonnes of finished steel stocks as of December 20, rising 3.2% from ten days ago but declining 5.9% month on month, according to data released by the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA).

The volume was 2.5% or 380,000 tonnes lower from the year-ago level, data showed.

As of December 20, finished steel stocks in southwestern China grew 26.3% from ten days earlier, marking the largest increase, while those in northeastern China climbed 14.5%. Finished steel stocks in eastern and southcentral China rose 9.3% and 10.6%, respectively, compared to December 10.

Northern China saw finished steel inventories drop 15.8% from the previous ten days, recording the biggest decline rate. Northwestern China's finished steel stocks remained flat from ten days ago, CISA data showed.