Top China steel city orders mills to cut output to clear air

Smoke and facilities of a steel mill are seen through a broken window of an abandoned residential building on a hazy day in Fengnan district of Tangshan, Hebei province February 18, 2014. REUTERS/Petar Kujundzic/File Photo

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - China's top steelmaking city of Tangshan has ordered mills in and near the area to cut production for five days from Friday to ease air pollution, according to a notice from the local government.

It was not clear how much capacity is affected but Tangshan is the biggest city in Hebei province, which accounts for more than 20 percent of China's steel output.