China makes strides in cutting overcapacity

BEIJING - China has made headway in cutting coal and steel overcapacity, resulting in improvements in efficiency and supply-demand mismatch, the country's top economic planner said Thursday.

During the first seven months of 2018, the country cut its coal capacity by 80 million tons and crude steel capacity by 24.7 million tons, accomplishing over 50 percent and 80 percent of its annual goals, respectively, Zhao Chenxin, spokesperson for the National Development and Reform Commission, told a news conference.

The country aims to cut coal capacity by 150 million tons and crude steel capacity by 30 million tons this year.

Capacity-cutting efforts have led to improved profitability in the steel, coal, and power generation sectors, whose profit margins surged 93.4 percent, 18.4 percent, and 28.1 percent year-on-year respectively in the first half of the year, Zhao said.

The government will continue to cut outdated and substandard production capacity but move to balance efforts between reducing overcapacity, ensuring supply, and stabilizing prices, he said.