CHINA'S MINISTER SAYS THAT THERE IS "NO IMPROVEMENT ON OVERCAPACITY" IN STEEL INDUSTRY

Massive overcapacity in China's steel industry is not yet falling, a vice minister said this Monday, as the country's leading steel firms conceded that current output is unsustainable and blamed the restart of mills previously shut.

"Prices have been improving since the end of last year but there hasn't been any fundamental change in the underlying conditions of the market and no improvement in overcapacity," industry vice minister Xin Guobin said, adding protectionism by other states is not the answer.

China's steel production fell in April from March, but average daily production increased from 2.279 million tonnes to 2.314 million tonnes, a record high