The news that the merger is to go ahead comes a month after Beijing launched a sweeping new blueprint for the steel sector which included a plan for rapid consolidation and the creation of two or three companies to rank in size with the global top ten.

• 上个月，中国政府宣布了钢铁产业的新政策，这包括对钢铁产业的重组和加强，希望能组成2到3家规模在全球十强之列的超大型公司。