Wuhan Iron and Steel (Group) Corp, China's fourth largest steelmaker by output, said it will boostinvestment in overseas iron ore mines and plans to achieve 100 percent iron ore self-sufficiency inthree to five years.Wisco, the parent company of Shanghai-listed Wuhan Iron and Steel, wants to abandon its heavyreliance on imported iron ore, which is sold at high prices by the top-three iron ore producers: Vale, RioTinto and BHP Billiton.
Wisco said in a statement the group will "secure part of iron ore resources in Canada and Brazil to achieve self sufficiency".Deng Qilin, general manager of Wisco, was quoted as saying by China Metallurgical News on Monday, "We won't buy a single ton of iron ore from traders after three years at the earliest, and five years at thelatest."But Sun Jing, director of Wuhan Iron and Steel's communicatiproduct prices only rose 2.5 percent on average, eroding domesticsteelmakers' profits, the data show.
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