China will continue to enforce controls on crude steel output during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030) as part of broader efforts to optimize the country's traditional industries and accelerate their structural upgrading, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said on December 26.
In an article published by the NDRC's Industrial Development Department, the commission said the priority for steel and other raw materials industries during the next five-year period will be to better balance supply and demand, improve product structure, and promote orderly industry consolidation.
The NDRC noted that China's steel sector is still facing challenges including insufficient dynamic supply-demand balance and suboptimal product structures. During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, the sector will deepen supply-side structural reforms, expand high-end capacity, and ensure that overall production scales remain moderate and broadly aligned with demand.
The commission reiterated that it will strictly prohibit illegal additions of new steelmaking capacity, continue implementing nationwide crude steel output controls, and strengthen industry management to phase out outdated and inefficient capacity.
Policy support will also focus on promoting technological innovation, developing higher value-added steel products for key industrial chains, and enhancing monitoring and early-warning mechanisms to guide stable industry operations, the NDRC said.