Turkey’s crude steel output sees sharp increase

ANKARA - Anadolu Agency

Crude steel production in Turkey increased sharply in the first quarter of 2017, reaching 8.8 million tons, according to World Steel Association data released on May 8.        

The output increased by 14.1 percent year-on-year during the first three months of 2017.        

Turkey maintained its position as the world’s eighth largest crude steel producer out of 67 countries, corresponding to about 2.13 percent of the global output.        

Veysel Yayan, secretary-general of the Turkish Iron and Steel Producers’ Association, said if the increase continues in the coming months, the country’s crude steel production would reach 35.2 million tons during the year.        

“This is a pleasing result, but we could not compensate our loss last year,” Yayan said.       
 
He said the output increase was due to an increase in exports despite a 10 percent decrease in domestic consumption.       
 
In the first quarter of 2017, Turkey’s crude steel export jumped by 20 percent year-on-year, reaching 5.2 million tons, and in dollar terms it soared by 33.3 percent year-on-year to $3.4 billion, he said.        

The import of crude steel declined in volume to around 21 percent or 4 million tons in the same period.        

The global production of crude steel rose by 5.7 percent during the first quarter of 2017 compared with the same period last year, totaling 410.5 million tons, according to the data.        

China retained its position as the world’s largest crude steel producer with 201.1 million tons - almost half of the total global output - in the same period while Turkey was listed among the first 10 countries that increased its steel production the most.      
  
Crude steel is an unrefined metal that is used in the construction industry.