Hebei Province-based Chinese steelmaker Hebei Iron and Steel Co. (Hebei Steel) has announced in its preliminary financial report for 2016 that it expects to record a net profit of RMB 1.5-1.6 billion ($218-233 million) for the year, compared to the net profit of RMB 0.57 billion recorded in 2015.
Hebei Steel stated that the rising trend of finished steel prices and its increased R&D investment, which boosted its proportion of high-end customers and optimized the variety of its product structure, contributed to its net profit in the given year.