At the end of the first quarter of this year, the liabilities of 30 major listed steelmakers in China totaled RMB 759.476 billion ($122 billion), up RMB 26.9 billion ($4.3 billion) year on year, as stated by Sheng Zhicheng, deputy secretary-general of the China Steel Logistics Committee (CSLC) which is part of the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing (CFLP).
The total assets of the steelmakers in question amounted to RMB 530.481 billion ($86 billion) as of the same date.
In particular, the liabilities of Hebei Iron and Steel Co. exceeded the value of its assets by RMB 45 billion ($7 billion) - the largest gap among the 30 steelmakers. The value of its assets amounted to RMB 53.516 billion ($8.6 billion), compared to liabilities of RMB 98.966 billion ($16 billion).
Six major listed Chinese steelmakers whose liabilities at the end of the first quarter exceeded the value of their assets by RMB 10 billion ($1.6 billion) or more included Hunan Valin Steel, WISCO, Shandong Steel, Baosteel, Ansteel and Shaogang. The gaps between liabilities and assets of Ansteel, Baosteel and WISCO amounted to RMB 10.953 billion ($1.8 billion), RMB 14.107 billion ($2.3 billion) and RMB 26.641 billion ($4.3 billion) respectively, down 5.45 percent, 16.85 percent and 8.56 percent compared to the end of the first quarter of 2012.