According to statistics released by the Chinese customs, China's exports of stainless steel flat products totaled 175,089 tons in May, decreasing by 11.1% from a month ago.
In May, the exports made to Taiwan, Korea and Vietnam dropped by 8.9%, 18.9% and 5.4%, all compared to the figures in April.
Market participants predicted that the exports would slow down in May as demand has become weak since late February when the nickel prices started decreasing.
Meanwhile, the country's imports of stainless steel flat products totaled 45,394 tons in May, decreasing by 5.1% from a month ago.
Among them, the imports from Korean and Taiwan increased by 7.6% and 13.9% month on month respectively.