Customs data showed that from January to May 2025, China exported 4.71 million tons of semi-finished carbon steel, an increase of 310% year-on-year. The monthly export volume in May increased by another 75% compared with April, and increased by 4.4 times year-on-year, reaching the highest level since 2007. The import volume in the same period dropped by 67%, indicating that domestic demand was weak and overseas demand for supply chain supplement was strong. The industry believes that low-priced, high-carbon-emission Chinese semi-finished products are rapidly filling the overseas rolling gap, and also put countries' emission reduction efforts at risk of "carbon leakage".