China announces further cuts in steel and coal production

Xu Shaoshi, chairman of the National Development and Reform Committee, said China will continue its program to cut steel and coal production. However, this does not apply to the reduction in aluminum production.
He clarified that in 2016 his country reduced steel production by 45 million tons and coal - by 250 million tons, which led to the reduction of 800 thousand metallurgists and miners.

He added that as part of the government's employment support program by the end of last year, "hundreds of thousands of workers in the metallurgical and coal industries were sent to other jobs."

China intends to continue with the current austerity plan this year, but meeting this target "will be much more difficult this year." China's economic growth in 2016 was about 6.7 percent.