China says smog fight will continue even as economic pressures mount

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's battle against toxic air pollution is becoming increasingly difficult but the government will not relent in its efforts even as the economy slows, an environment ministry official told reporters on Wednesday.

China has been shutting vast swathes of industrial capacity, curbing traffic and cutting coal use in pollution-prone regions of the north, but the Ministry of Ecology and Environment warned last week that an economic slowdown was making the campaign against smog more challenging.