CHINA'S steel market may remain weak next month although it is a peak consumption season traditionally, according to the country's steel industry group.

"Although it's a peak season for the steel industry, demand remains lukewarm, with housing starts falling and the overall manufacturing sector remaining weak," the China Iron and Steel Association said yesterday.

China's first-quarter economic growth slowed to a disappointing 7.7 percent year on year, compared with 7.9 percent in the fourth quarter of last year. "This means China's economy faces many uncertainties to bounce back steadily," the association said.

Still, steel production remained at a high level. China's crude steel output reached 191.89 million tons in the first three months of this year, an increase of 9.1 percent from a year earlier, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.