March 8 (Reuters) - BHP Billiton (LON:BLT) Ltd BHP.AX :
* Global iron ore & steel forecast conference presentation
* BHP Billiton is meeting the challenges of the global iron ore market through a focus on productivity
* Chinese government's steel industry restructure plans will take time to implement
* "Short-term market outlook remains challenging"
* "Continue to increase our productivity in port and rail as we approach our targeted run rate of approximately 270 million tonnes per annum"
* Basto reiterated that the mining industry would need to continue to meet the challenges of a lower price environment through productivity
* Demand growth in China will remain weak in the short term
* Expect China's crude steel production to peak between 935-985 mt in the mid 2020s
* Productivity drive has supported an EBITDA margin of over 50 per cent at WAIO despite the iron ore price halving since 2012
* Basto reinforced company's commitment to Western Australia and its local communities
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