(Yicai Global) March 22 -- Tangshan and Jincheng, two important industrial cities in northern China, limited the production of coal, steel, and chemicals to respond to the severe air pollution.

The environmental protection authorities in Tangshan, an important steel production base in Hebei province, issued an orange alert for heavy air pollution on March 20 and asked local industrial firms to adjust their output according to related regulations.

Jincheng, located in China’s biggest coal-producing province Shanxi, asked coal and chemical companies to cut their production by 30 percent and steel firms to suspend operation at some blast furnaces on March 20.

Three methyl alcohol plants in Jincheng cut their production by nearly 300 tons a day, but the restriction has only a limited impact on the methyl alcohol supply chain in the city and surrounding markets, said Liu Shuyuan, a researcher at China Futures.

The production limit due to worsening air diffusion conditions will affect some steel companies, but the air quality in Tangshan will return to good to excellent levels between today and March 24, according to the estimate by the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.

Steel firms in Jincheng need to halt production for just two days, so the production curb will only have a limited impact on the local steel market, Futures Daily reported, citing Ruan Juntao, a researcher at Baocheng Futures.

Editor: Futura Costaglione