China’s daily steel output surged to a record in February as big mills ramped up production, but rising inventories and concerns over Beijing’s latest property curbs have raised doubts about the strength of demand. China produced 2.208 million tonnes of crude steel a day on average last month, well above the previous record of 2.05 million tonnes set in January, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed. Output for the first two months of 2013 jumped 10.6 per cent from a year ago. The country is the world’s biggest consumer and producer of steel. Demand typically improves in China from March as manufacturing and construction activities pick up after the Lunar New Year break and a winter lull. Steelmakers have been gearing up for a strong year as the Chinese economy mends and after production rose. Property

restrictions announced on March 1, however, led some analysts to revise down demand growth projections for 2013, and inventories of steel products are rising.