China provides good conditions for global metallurgy

China's pursuit of better air quality is bliss for global steelmakers.

Japan's largest manufacturer Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp. increases profit ninefold in the first half as China's anti-pollution and bloated steel industry pushed prices up to their highest levels in five years. The company said its annual net income is likely to rise 30 percent to 170 billion yen.

Posco, the largest Korean company, said it expects it to see higher fourth-quarter earnings, while Hesteel Co. in China more than doubled profits in the first nine months.

Nippon Steel expects demand to remain strong in Japan, thanks to the automotive, industrial and civil engineering industries, while demand in overseas markets also remains strong, it said in a statement. The company's shares are up about 7 percent this year, lagging rival JFEs with nearly 40 percent and over 30 percent at Posco.