By Bloomberg News
Sept. 9 (Bloomberg) -- China, the world’s largest steelmaker, increased output to a record in August as government spending spurred building and manufacturing demand, according to industry publication Umetal.
Output was 51.7 million metric tons last month, Umetal analyst Hu Yanping said today, citing data from the China Iron & Steel Association. The country produced 50.7 million tons in July, according to the National Bureau of Statistics, which will announce official August output this week.
China is spending 4 trillion yuan ($586 billion) to revive its economy, bolstering demand for steel used in cars, houses and railways. Rising output and a price surge earlier this year have led to a 17 percent decline in benchmark Chinese steel prices in the past four weeks.
“Lower prices signal September steel output is likely to fall from the previous month,” Hu said over the phone from Beijing.
Some mills in the northern province of Hebei, the nation’s biggest steelmaking region, have brought forward annual maintenance or closed small furnaces amid slowing orders, she said.
--Helen Yuan. Editors: Tan Hwee Ann, Matthew Oakley.
To contact the reporter on this story: Helen Yuan in Shanghai at hyuan@bloomberg.net
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