Chinese key steel mills held 16.01 million tonnes of finished steel stocks as of December 20, increasing 8.6% from December 10 and 2.6% month on month, according to data released by the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA).

The volume was 9.4% or 1.37 million tonnes higher than the year-ago level, the CISA data showed.

Finished steel stocks increased in five of six major production regions in China, ranging 4.2-15.2% compared to December 10.

Finished steel stocks in eastern China registered the sharpest increase of 15.2%, which was followed by a growth of 13.1% in northeastern China. Stocks in northwestern, northern, and Central South China gained 11.5%, 4.2%, and 5.4%, respectively. Southwestern China bucked the trend with a decrease of 7.1%.