Beijing (Mar. 27, 2012) – China's Assistant Finance Minister, Ma Lijun recently told reporters in China that there is serious excess capacity in China's steelcord industry.

He said capacity for steelcord in China has been doubling every year for the last 10 years, growing from 200 tonnes in 2002 to over 10,000 tones in 2012. Meanwhile, the number of manufacturers has grown to over 30 now, from just 3 in the late 1990s.

Ma identified Shandong Shen Steelcord which set up in 2008 with 65,000 tonnes, had increased to 340,000 tonnes in 2011. Furthermore, the top ten steelcord makers have total capacity for 1.8 million tonnes annually. Adding in the next ten makers, the total capacity reached over 2.4 million tonnes.

Reported ion the CRIA website, Shandong Shen Steelcord said that each tonne of steelcord results in a loss of over 1000 yuan (euro 100), as a result over half its machines lie idle. Nevertheless, more capacity is being built.

The report said the minister called for more control of the steelcord industry, blaming the bad situation on lack of planning and co-ordination.