Economy

WSA: Global Steel Production Dips in June, Still Up 12% from Year-Ago Levels

Written by David Schollaert

July 23, 2021

World crude steel production, at an estimated 167.9 million metric tons in June, was down 3.7% from a month ago but up 12.0% when compared to the same year-ago period, reported the World Steel Association (worldsteel). June’s data is the first decrease in more than four months and follows sequential record-breaking increases seen from March through May.

Despite a slight deceleration in crude steel output, June’s total remains higher than the previous high from May 2019, when total estimated world crude steel production was 163.1 million metric tons.

Worldsteel’s data shows that China’s 93.9 million tons of output in June, a 5.6% month-on-month decrease, heavily impacted the overall global deceleration. The decrease wasn’t limited just to Chinese crude steel production alone, as seven of the top 10 global steel-producing counties also reported lower output in June. But China’s decline – down 5.6 million tons in June – accounted for nearly 90% of the total 6.3 million metric ton global decrease.

Turkey and India, however, two of the top 10 global steel-producing counties, saw increases of 6.3% and 2.2%, respectively, compared to the month prior. Korea’s output was sideways over the same period, worldsteel said.

By David Schollaert, David@SteelMarketUpdate.com

David Schollaert

David Schollaert is a senior analyst for Steel Market Update. David joined SMU after more than a decade in the metals and mining industry in a myriad of different roles. Much of his early experience and expertise were within the coverage and analysis of steel-making raw materials and served previously as senior editor of the CRU Prices Service. Most recently, however, before his return to market analysis, David held roles as a metals buyer and an operations manager for raw material suppliers. Based in CRU’s Pittsburgh office, David can be reached at david@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-720-1008.

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