Changjiang Securities·2025-08-03 23:30Investment Rating - The industry investment rating is Neutral, maintained [7] Core Viewpoints - The long-term investment value of the steel sector remains promising under the "anti-involution" theme, similar to the supply-side reform period from 2016 to 2018, where the sector's performance was volatile until the exit of outdated capacities in late 2016 [2][6] - In the short term, the market lacks clear anchors for trading, leading to expectations that the equity market will follow steel prices, which are influenced by upstream and downstream trading [2][6] - The valuation position of steel stocks is a key focus for the market, with companies like Hualing Steel, New Steel, and Fangda Special Steel appearing relatively undervalued [6][5] Summary by Sections Market Performance - Recent tracking indicates insufficient downstream support, leading to a decline in steel prices. The apparent consumption of five major steel products decreased by 0.69% year-on-year and 2.47% month-on-month [4] - The average daily pig iron output of sample steel companies fell to 2.4071 million tons, down 1.52 million tons per day month-on-month [4] - Total steel inventory increased by 1.17% month-on-month, while year-on-year it decreased by 23.42% [4] Price Trends - Shanghai rebar prices dropped to 3,350 CNY/ton, down 100 CNY/ton month-on-month, while hot-rolled steel prices rose to 3,390 CNY/ton, down 130 CNY/ton month-on-month [5] - The estimated profit for rebar is 148 CNY/ton, with a lagging cost profit of 399 CNY/ton [5] Policy and Market Outlook - The "anti-involution" policy is expected to continue, with recent government meetings emphasizing the need to rectify disorderly competition and optimize capacity in key industries [6] - The report suggests that despite short-term volatility, the long-term outlook for the steel sector remains positive due to cost optimization and sustained policy support [6][2] - The report identifies four main investment lines: cost reduction due to new capacity, recovery of performance and valuation for low PB stocks, mergers and acquisitions under state-owned enterprise reforms, and focusing on quality processing and resource leaders [26][27][29]