Tangshan Iron & Steel – China’s second largest publicly traded steel mill – said its profit for the first six month of this year might surge as much as 80% thanks to better production techniques, Economy Daily reported. The lower limit of its prediction was a 50% gain. The Hebei province-based steelmaker reported nearly RMB703 million in net profits last year, but profits reached RMB465 million in the first quarter of this year alone. Its share price has more than quadrupled since 2006. It is concentrating on increasing its output of higher value-added products, such as cold-roll steel sheets for autos and plates for ships. The industrial benchmark price for hot-roll coil averaged RMB4,248 per metric ton this year compared to RMB3,776 last year.