Taiyuan Iron & Steel Group, China's biggest stainless-steel producer, is looking to invest in iron ore and nickel resources in Australia and other countries, Chairman Li Xiaobo said.

"We are chasing some iron ore projects as well as nickel," Li said in an interview in Shanghai, declining to give details. "So far we haven't settled on a good target."

Chinese companies, the biggest buyer of iron ore and nickel, are hunting for steelmaking raw materials as output of crude steel jumped to a record this year.