China Suspends Steel ‘Capacity Replacement’ Program Amid Overcapacity Crisis

China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has suspended its “capacity replacement” policy in the steel manufacturing sector, as the profits of China’s steel industry continue to plummet. Starting from Aug. 23, the replacement program that has been implemented since 2021 has been put on hold, meaning applications for new steel production under the program will no longer be approved. In a statement, the ministry said that the policy regulation is no longer applicable due to “new challenges” the steel industry is facing, and authorities are creating a new policy to replace it. The capacity replacement program in the steel industry required steel manufacturers to remove a certain amount of existing capacity when building new steel plants....