Chinese Steelmakers Merge

Three Chinese steel companies are set to merge, creating the country’s biggest steel maker, in a bid to cushion the impact of the global financial crisis Industry Week reported.

Tangshan Iron and Steel, already one of China’s largest steel producers, will join two smaller firms, all three based in the northern province of Hebei, China’s official Xinhua news agency said. The new group’s annual production of raw steel will be about 32 million tons, overtaking that of China’s largest steel company Baosteel. The three are all listed firms, and are all part of the state-owned Hebei Iron and Steel Group.

China’s steel industry has suffered from the global financial crisis, and recorded a combined loss in October, the first time in six years.