Brussels, 22 April 2014 – World crude steel production for the 65 countries reporting to the World Steel Association (worldsteel) was 141 million tonnes (Mt) in March 2014, an increase of 2.7% compared to March 2013.
In the first three months of 2014, Asia produced 274.0 Mt of crude steel, an increase of 2.6% over the first quarter of 2013. The EU produced 43.8 Mt of crude steel in the first quarter of 2014, up by 6.7% compared to the same quarter of 2013. North America’s crude steel production in the first three months of 2014 was 29.9 Mt, an increase 0.8% compared to the first quarter of 2013. The C.I.S. produced 26.3 Mt of crude steel in the first three months of 2014, a decrease of -2.8% over the same months of 2013.
China’s crude steel production for March 2014 was 70.3 Mt, up by 2.2% compared to March 2013. Elsewhere in Asia, Japan produced 9.7 Mt of crude steel in March 2014, an increase of 2.9% over March 2013. South Korea’s crude steel production was 6.1 Mt in March 2014, up by 8.0% on March 2013.
In the EU, Germany produced 4.0 Mt of crude steel in March 2014, an increase of 6.1% compared to March 2013. Italy produced 2.4 Mt of crude steel, up by 8.0% compared to March 2013. France’s crude steel production was 1.4 Mt, an increase of 4.1% on March 2013. Spain produced 1.3 Mt of crude steel, up by 4.1% compared to March 2013.
Turkey’s crude steel production for March 2014 was 2.8 Mt, down by -4.3% on March 2013.
In March 2014, Russia produced 6.0 Mt of crude steel, an increase of 1.3% compared to the same month 2013. Ukraine’s production was 2.7 Mt in March 2014, down by -7.7% on March 2013.
The US produced 7.4 Mt of crude steel in March 2014, up by 0.9% on March 2013.
The crude steel capacity utilisation ratio for the 65 countries in March 2014 was 79.0% and it is 0.4 percentage points lower than March 2013. Compared to February 2014, it is 1.4 percentage points higher.
• The monthly crude steel capacity utilisation ratio is calculated based on crude steel production and capacity information available at worldsteel. The capacity information is based on publicly-available data, updated twice a year and verified through worldsteel’s membership.
• The World Steel Association (worldsteel) is one of the largest and most dynamic industry associations in the world. worldsteel represents approximately 170 steel producers (including 17 of the world’s 20 largest steel companies), national and regional steel industry associations, and steel research institutes. worldsteel members represent around 85% of world steel production.
• Megatonne (Mt) is a metric unit equivalent to 1 million tonnes.