WORLD PRODUCTION HEADLINESWorld Production
July World Steel Production Highest of the Year
Aug. 21, 2009 World crude steel production for the 66 countries reporting to the World Steel Association was 103.9 million tonnes in July — down 11.1% compared to the same month last year but still the highest monthly production figure posted in 2009.
Since April 2009, world crude steel production has shown a steady month-on-month increase.
China’s July production, at 50.7 million tonnes, accounts for almost half of the July world total and represents the first time that China has surpassed 50 million tonnes in a month. The figure is 12.6% higher than July 2008.
Other countries in Asia reported losses compared to July 2008. Japan produced 7.7 million tonnes of crude steel in July (-24.9% vs. a year ago), and South Korea’s 4.0 million tonnes was off by 13.3%.
In the European Union, Germany’s crude steel production was 2.7 million tonnes, down 28.8% from July 2008. Likewise, the United Kingdom reported a 30.6% decrease from a year ago, with 0.8 million tonnes.
A similar trend emerged in other major steel-producing countries:
- United States, 5.0 million tonnes (-41.6% vs. July 2008)
- Brazil, 2.5 million tonnes (-22.8%)
- Russia, 5.0 million tonnes (-18.4%)
- Ukraine, 2.7 million tonnes (-27.7%)
- Turkey, 2.3 million tonnes (-8.5%)
Bucking the trend was Iran, which produced 0.9 million tonnes of crude steel in July, a 15.1% increase over the same month a year ago.
Despite the drop-off from July 2008, most of the major steel producers — including China, Japan, Germany, the U.S., Brazil, Turkey, Russia, and Ukraine — reported their highest monthly figures so far this year.
Through July, total crude steel production in the 66 reporting countries was 653 million tonnes, a 19.9% decrease compared to the same seven-month period of 2008.