Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal, the world's second-biggest steelmaker plans to produce 21.70 million tonnes of crude steel on a parent basis in the October-March half-year, against 22.08 million tonnes a year earlier. Slumping steel prices in Asia, hit by massive exports from China, and soft demand at home due to slack consumption of cars and houses have forced major steelmakers like Nippon Steel and JFE Steel, a unit of JFE Holdings, to trim output this year.
