Low prices and poor economic conditions in the worldwide steel industry forced additional consolidation in early 2002. Although worldwide output of steel was up 6 percent compared to 2001 levels, most of the increase was attributed to higher production volumes in Asia, particularly China, which saw a 20 percent increase in steel production over the previous year. The worldwide cement, lime, non-ferrous metals, glass, environment, energy and chemical industries also remained subdued. Although the situation was not quite as harsh as in the steel industry, there was still a trend toward consolidation of producers. Many producers also increased their capacities in the newly industrialized and emerging economies in Asia (particularly China) and eastern Europe, where new plants are being built and many existing plants are being modernized.
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