INDUSTRIAL overcapacity in China has got much worse since 2009, with the government struggling to implement reforms and overcome the resistance of growth-obsessed local governments, a European business lobby said yesterday.

    The Central Government has identified overcapacity and the closure of debt-ridden “zombie” firms as one of its key policy priorities for 2016, and it has already published action plans aimed at shutting 100 million-150 million tons of low-end steel capacity and 500 million tons of coal production.

    The plans were the latest in a long line of measures aimed at tackling debilitating capacity gluts in several major industries, but it remains unclear whether the government can force failing enterprises out of the market and resolve problems like debt and unemployment, the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China said in a report.

    With regional governments still chasing growth, there are insufficient incentives to close down failing firms, which are also treated leniently by local banks and environmental regulators, the report said.

    Local governments have also obstructed mergers and acquisitions amid fears that vital tax revenues will be transferred to other jurisdictions, and China needs to provide more revenue streams for regional authorities, the report added.

    With demand slowing and prices collapsing, China’s bloated industries are facing mounting debts and heavy losses, and the government no longer has the “deep pockets” required to bail out struggling firms with fresh stimulus measures, Joerg Wuttke, president of the chamber, said.

    Firms have tried to export their surpluses, leading to plunging global steel prices, the closure of plants in the United Kingdom and a growing number of anti-dumping investigations into Chinese products, he said.

    According to the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA), China now has an annual capacity surplus of around 400 million tons, with utilization rates falling to 67 percent in 2015.

    Though production fell for the first time since 1981 last year, capacity will probably increase further in 2016, the report said.

    (SD-Agencies)