BEIJING, July 16 (Xinhua) -- China's crude steel output increased by 9.9 percent year on year to 492.17 million metric tons (tonnes) in the first half of this year, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed Monday.
The country's production of steel products in the first six months reached 586.90 million tonnes, up 11.4 percent year on year.
Crude steel output in June went up 10 percent year on year to 87.53 million tonnes, and production of steel products in the same month rose 12.6 percent year on year to 107.10 million tonnes.
Source: National Bureau of Statistics
The increases could be attributed to a growing demand from the real estate industry. Data from NBS showed that the overall investment in China's real estate industry hit 6.16 trillion yuan from January to June, jumping 10.9 percent year on year.
In the first six months, China exported 34.40 million tonnes of steel products, down 2.6 percent year on year, while imports came in at 5.82 million tonnes, down 12.7 percent, according to the General Administration of Customs of China. (Edited by Su Dan)
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