Taiyuan Iron and Steel Group Co Ltd, the world's largest stainless steel producer by output, plans to increase its product exports by about 52 percent to 500,000 metric tons next year.

Experiencing a weak market at home and overseas, it will continue to focus on its high-end key products, it said on Thursday, sales of which have also been affected by the economic slowdown.

The company expects to reach revenue of about 130 billion yuan ($20.6 billion) with profit of 380 million this year, and its target in 2013 is to reach revenue of 140 billion yuan with profit of 500 million, it added.

Imported iron ore prices have soared from $90 a ton in September to $137 a ton in December, up 46 percent, according to industrial data, as the economy slowly warms.

Li Huifeng, a senior employee at the company's technology center, said: "However, TISCO will not be affected too much by the rising iron ore prices because the group owns many mines in Shanxi province, which can provide about half of our raw material supply."

The company has annual capacity of 3 million tons of stainless steel.