At 10 a.m. today, the inaugural meeting of China Baowu Steel Group Corporation was held in Shanghai.

Member of the Political Bureau of CPC Central Committee and Party secretary of Shanghai Han Zheng, Chairman and Deputy Party Secretary of the State Council State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission Xiao Yaqing, Deputy Party Secretary and Mayor of Shanghai Yang Xiong, vice minister of the Organization Department of the Central Committee of the CPC Gao Xuanmin, vice governor of Hubei Province Xu Kezhen; Vice Chairman and Deputy Party Secretary of the State Council State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission Zhang Xiwu; Vice Mayor of Shanghai Zhou Bo; former chairman of board of supervisors of WISCO appointed by the State Council Zhao Hualin; former Party secretary and chairman of Baosteel Group Xu Lejiang; chairman and Party secretary of Baowu Group Ma Guoqiang; Party secretary of China Iron & Steel Association Liu Zhenjiang, etc., attended the meeting.

分组织部门的领导人ral Committee of the CPC, State Council State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, etc., Shanghai municipal government, Hubei provincial government; the principals of the State Council state-owned key large enterprise’s board of supervisors office; the leaders of Hubei Province Wuhan City, Shanghai Pudong New District, Baoshan District, Wuhan Qingshan District; the principals of some central enterprises; the old leaders of former Baosteel Group and WISCO; the representatives of strategic partners; the leaders of industrial associations; the representatives of model workers and employees, the friends from the media circle were also invited to the inaugural meeting to witness this important historic moment in the development course of Chinese steel industry together.

The advertising video of the merger of Baosteel and WISCO drew open the curtain of the inaugural meeting.

After the merger, China Baowu Group has a staff of 228,000 people, a total asset of approximately RMB 730 billion yuan, and the operating revenue will reach RMB 330 billion yuan. The group will have 3 major serial products, i.e. plain carbon steel, stainless steel, special steel. With an annual crude steel scale ranking first in China and second in the world, it will become one of the most influential enteprise in Chinese even global steel industry.

The meeting was chaired by president and deputy Party secretary of Baowu Group Chen Derong.

▍Ma Guoqiang：China Baowu Group will be committed to enhancing the international competitiveness of Chinese steel industry, and leading the transformation upgrading of exemplary industry.

China Baowu Group will be committed to enhancing the international competitiveness of Chinese steel industry, further improving the influence and radiation force of the technological level and production facility level of Chinese steel industry, making active efforts for Chinese steel enterprises’ participation in the construction of the “The Belt and Road Initiative” and international capacity cooperation. According to the major decisions of the Party Central Committee and the State Council about deepening the reform of state-owned enterprises, China Baowu Group will gradually shift to capital management according to the functional orientatin of state-owned capital investment company, deepen reform in aspects of system and mechanism innovation, development of professionalized company, professional manager system, “downsizing”, quality and efficiency improvement, etc., and forge world class platform of technology innovation, industrial investment and capital operation in the steel industry. China Baowu Group will take high-end, intelilgent, green and service-oriented as the development principle, according to “Made in China 2025” strategy, state-owned capital and enterprise reform and the general requirements of “dissolving overcapacity”, serve the national strategy, implement business combination of “powerful main steel business and synergetic development of related businesses”, focus on the main steel business to grow stronger, lead the exemplary transformation upgrading of the industry, and enhance the global influence comprehensively. China Baowu Group will comply with the development trend of service-oriented transformation of manufacturing industry and competition of industry chain, appropriately extend its business field to upstream and downstream of steel industry chain, accelerate the “One body two wing” strategy with steel industry as the main body, smart manufacturing of green premium products and platform service of steel ecological circle as the two wings.

▍Xu Kezhen: We will commit ourselves to building the optimum business environment, going all out to support better and quicker development of China Baowu Group in Hubei. On behalf of Hubei Provincial committee and government, I’d like to congratulate the establishment of China Baowu Group. In the critical period while the whole nation is striving to promote the construction of a well-off society and realize the Chinese dream, Baosteel joins hands with WISCO to realize combination of the strengths, and become one of the most influential steel enterprise in China and even the world, which is conducive to driving the supply side structural reform of steel industry, and promoting the healthy development of steel industry; helpful to pushing the enterprises to perfect the corporate governance and improve quality and efficiency; helpful to foster the world class steel enterprise to actively participate in the international competition, which is significantly meaningful and profoundly influential to drive the acceleration and upgrading of Chinese economy and construction of manufacturing giant.

We sincerely wish that China Baowu Group can earnestly implement the key decision of the central Party Comittee and the State Council, strive to follow a green road and play an exemplary role in dissolving the overcapacity, structural adjustment, transformation and upgrading of steel industry. China Baowu Group has a profound historical origin and indissociable blood ties with Hubei, the cooperation between both parties has been added with new power and impetus on the basis of the past. The harmonious cooperative relationship between Hubei and China Baowu Group does not change, and the profound feeling with China Baowu Group that is historically inherited will not change, and our utmost support of the operations of China Baowu Group in Hubei will not change. Hubei province is always a family with China Baowu Group, we will commit ourselves to building the optimum business environment, going all out to support better and quicker development of China Baowu Group in Hubei. We sincerely wish a better tomorrow of China Baowu Grou.

▍Yang Xiong: Shanghai Municipal Party Committee and government will foster the legalized, internationalized and convenient business environment as always, and support the development and growth of China Baowu Group.

On behalf of Shanghai Municipal Party Committee and government, I’d like to thank the State Council SASAC and Hubei Province for the long-term care and support to Shanghai. Approved by the State Council, Baosteel Group Corporation and Wuhan Iron & Steel (Group) Corporation are restructured to establish China Baowu Iron & Steel Group Corporation, which is an important measure to implement the major decisions of the Party Central Committee and the State Council about deepening the reform of state-owned enterprises and promoting the supply side structural reform, which is conducive to optimizing the resources configuration and give play to the synergistic effect, making state-owned enterprise to grow bigger and stronger, enhancing the international competitiveness and influence of Chinese steel industry and propel China to turn from larger steel producer to strong steel producer, to better serve “the Belt and Road Initiative” and international capacity cooperation.

Now Shanghai is implementing the 5 major development concepts according to the requirements of central government, actively adapting to the new normals of economic developments, focusing on strengthening the supply side structural reform, and promoting innovation-driven development and economic transformation upgrading. The state-owned capital and enterprises play a vital role in the economic and social development of Shanghai, Baosteel Group, as the representative of central enterprises in Shanghai, has made active contributions to the economic development of Shanghai for a long time. The establishment of China Baowu Group will help to play the supportive effect of kay industries in local economy, accelerate the promotion of industrial structural optimization and upgrading in Shanghai, and also provide experiences for Shanghai to deepen the reform of state-owned capital and enterprises. Shanghai Municipal Party Committee and government will foster the legalized, internationalized and convenient business environment as always, and support the development and growth of China Baowu Group.

▍Xiao Yaqing: working hard to drive the transformation upgrading and innovative development of Chinest steel industry

On behalf of the State Council SASAC, I’d like to congratulate the successful restructuring of Baosteel and WISCO and the establishment of the new group. The central Party committee and the State Council pay much attention to the reform and development of the state-owned enterprises. The restructuring of Baosteel and WISCO is an important measure by SASAC to firmly implement the decisions and deployments of the central Party committee and the State Council, solidly promote the supply side structural reform, and energentically adjust and optimize the layout and structure of state-owned capital, which is very meaningful to deepen and drive the structural optimization, transformation and upgrading of Chinese steel industry, effectively drive better service of Chinese steel industry to the development of national economy, and speed up the enhancement of the international competitiveness of Chinese steel enterprises. The successful restructuring of Baosteel and WISCO symbolizes that the enterprise has entered a new development stage.

The new blueprint has been drawn, the new march is about to set out. Han Zheng, Xiao Yaqing, Xu Kezhen and Ma Guoqiang unveiled the nameplate of China Baowu Iron & Steel Group Corporiation, and China Baowu Group officially set sail.