Xinhua, citing Mr Li Shijun chief analyst for the China Iron and Steel Association reported that China's steel output growth will slow down to an average annual expansion of 6% over the next five years amid the country's efforts to restructure its economy.
Mr Li told attendees at a meeting in Shanghai on the steel industry's development strategies that the peak for the annual output of China's steel industry in the next five years would likely be around 850 million tonnes.
Mr Li said “Steel consumption will be restricted in the next five years as China moves to reduce its reliance on investment and exports and depend more on consumption to drive the economy.”
According to CISA's statistics, China's crude steel output reached a new high of 627 million tonnes in 2010 after the industry's average annual growth rate slowed to 12% during the 11th Five-Year Plan period from 2006 to 2010, compared to 22.6% from 2001 to 2005.
( Source: www.steelguru.com )