SEOUL, May 28 (Yonhap) -- POSCO, South Korea's leading steelmaker, said Tuesday that it has completed the construction of a plant in the country that produces wire rods used for nuts, bearings, springs and other products.

The plant with an annual capacity of 700,000 tons will help POSCO emerge as the world's third-largest producer of wire rods with a capacity of 2.8 million tons, it said.

The country imports around 1 million tons of wire rods annually to meet its annual demand for 3.2 million tons of wire rods, according to POSCO.

POSCO said the plant in Pohang, 374 kilometers southeast of Seoul, will also produce high-strength springs and wires used for deepwater exploitation.

Meanwhile, POSCO completed the construction of a plant that produces ferrosilicon, a key material used for producing steel products.

Ferrosilicon refers to an alloy of iron and silicon, and is used for making silicon steel and high-silicon cast iron.

The plant will produce 35,000 tons of ferrosilicon annually, it said.