NIPPON STEEL DENIES CHINA SEEKING JAPANESE PLANTS
  Nippon Steel Corp <NSTC.T> denied local
  newspaper reports that China has been seeking to buy steel
  plants from Japanese firms which plan to suspend output under
  the recently announced rationalisation program.
      The Mainichi Shimbun quoted Nippon Steel as saying that
  China's State Planning Commission and some Chinese firms have
  asked Japanese makers to sell them steel works and rolling
  mills to expand steelmaking cheaply. It named no sources.
      A Nippon Steel spokesman told Reuters that China has made
  no such official request, and the company was not considering
  such sales at the moment.
      But Mainichi quoted Nippon Steel officials as saying if
  prices are reasonable, they would export their used mills to
  China.
      The paper said China's crude steel output totalled 52 mln
  tonnes in calendar 1986 and that it plans to increase to 80 mln
  by 1996.
      Japan's steel industry rationalisation plan is aimed at
  cutting production capacity sharply over the next few years.