All but one of the top 10 steelmakers in China reduced output in 2015, a year that marked the first decline in output in 34 years, China Iron & Steel Association data showed.
As in the previous year, state-owned giant Hebei Iron & Steel Group took pole position, producing 47.75 million mt of crude steel, up 1.4% from 2014. This was followed by Baosteel Group which produced 34.94 million mt, or 2.6% less steel.
Privately owned Jiangsu Shagang Group, whose product exports of 6.8 million mt last year alone would rank it No. 24 on the World Steel Association's latest ranking of the largest steel producing countries, saw total output of 34.21 million mt -- a drop of 3.2%.
Shougang Group, with works mainly in the northern Hebei province, and Wuhan Iron & Steel Group, based in Central China's Hubei province, swapped positions at numbers five and six respectively.
Rounding off the list, Beijing Jianlong Heavy Industry Group pipped Benxi Steel Group at No. 10 on the list, with output at 15.14 million mt.
Privately held Jianlong, headquartered in Beijing but with works in Hebei and across the three northeastern provinces of Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang, was reported to have been the white knight for beleaguered Haixin Iron & Steel of Shanxi province, and the buyer of shares of Tangshan Guofeng Iron & Steel from the state-owned China National Travel Service (HK) Group. Jianlong ranked 12th in 2014 output.
The percentage changes in the table were calculated based on adjusted 2014 output figures provided by CISA. But comparing the latest figures with those for 2014 first released at this time last year, Wuhan Iron & Steel Group and Baosteel Group would have seen output down 22% and 19% respectively.
Wuhan Steel's output dropped as a result of the exit of Guangxi Liuzhou Iron & Steel, which produced 11.39 million mt in 2015. Baosteel's output took a hit from the departure of Ningbo Iron & Steel, which was acquired by Hangzhou Iron & Steel, and a 42% drop in group member Xinjiang Bayi Iron & Steel Co.'s output.
Collectively, China's top 10 steelmakers produced 274.73 million mt or 34% of the country's output, adding to nation's overcapacity woes.
