China urges caution over British Steel nationalisation plan
A British Steel sign is seen at British Steel's Scunthorpe plant, Scunthorpe, Britain on April 14, 2025.
PHOTO: Reuters file
BEIJING — China on Thursday (May 14) urged Britain to "make decisions prudently" over plans to nationalise British Steel, and called on the British government to "respect the wishes of firms and market principles, and avoid the abuse of administrative coercive measures".
The British government seized operational control of British Steel from its Chinese owners, Jingye, in April 2025 and, under plans announced by Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday, could fully nationalise it.
China will closely follow the developments and will "take strong measures to safeguard legitimate rights of Chinese companies", according to a statement released by the commerce ministry.
The British government did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
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