SHANGHAI: Following a major restructuring late last year, Hebei Iron & Steel Group (Hebei Steel) has overtaken industry "dragon head" Baosteel in terms of output, giving it the clout to share the platform with the Shanghai producer in price setting and negotiations with overseas ore suppliers.

Figures from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology showed that Hebei Steel has displaced Baosteel from the top slot in May with a total output of 3.15 million metric tons. Baosteel produced 3.13 million tons of steel products that month.

The latest count, of course, is unlikely to have any material impact on the ongoing Baosteel-led price negotiations with foreign ore suppliers. But industry analysts said the rise of Hebei Steel is significant to the future development of the industry, especially when the company is embarking on the second stage of restructuring by grouping together its three listed subsidiaries and two privately held units to form a mega steel conglomerate with a public listing.