钢铁行业周报：钢价偏强运行，钢厂盈利率大幅好转

Investment Rating - The report maintains an "Overweight" rating for the steel industry [5][39]. Core Views - The steel market is experiencing a significant improvement in demand due to traditional peak seasons and supportive macroeconomic policies, leading to a recovery in steel mill profit margins [5][39]. - The steel industry is expected to see strong price performance in the short term, driven by improved demand and policy support [5][39]. Summary by Sections Market Review - The steel sector declined by 4.9% last week, underperforming the benchmark index (CSI 300) by 1.6 percentage points. The sector's PE ratio is at 16.1 times, in the 65.1 percentile over the past decade, while the PB ratio is at 0.9 times, in the 12.6 percentile, indicating a decline in valuation [2][3]. Supply and Demand Dynamics - Supply: As of October 11, the operating rate of sample steel mills was 87.5%, up 1.9 percentage points week-on-week. The total output of five major steel products was 8.638 million tons, a 1.2% increase week-on-week [3]. - Demand: The weekly consumption of five major steel products reached 8.929 million tons, a 10.7% increase week-on-week. The demand for rebar was the highest among the products [3][27]. - Inventory: Total inventory of five major steel products was 13.101 million tons, down 2.2% week-on-week, indicating continued destocking [3]. Profitability and Price Trends - Steel mill profitability has significantly improved, with the profit margin rising to 71.5%, an increase of 33.8 percentage points week-on-week. The price indices for various steel products have also shown upward trends, with rebar prices increasing by 4.4% [4][39]. Investment Recommendations - In the short term, the steel market is expected to perform strongly due to seasonal demand and favorable policies. Long-term prospects are positive for leading companies with scale advantages as the industry undergoes high-quality development and regional capacity consolidation [5][39].