During the "New Horizons in Global Steel Markets" 9th Annual Conference organized by SteelOrbis in Istanbul on November 28, Dr. Veysel Yayan, general secretary of the Turkish Steel Producers Association, said that Turkey is expected to close 2014 with an annual crude steel output of 34 million mt, down1.9 percent compared to 2013.
Commenting on crude steel production in Turkey, Dr. Yayan stated, "We had productive years in the 2000s, raising crude steel output from 16.5 million mt to 36 million mt. We increased crude steel output the most compared to other countries. We had hoped that the 3.4 percent decline in output in 2013 wouıld be temporary, but this year, with the price gap increasing between iron ore and scrap, we forecast a decline in crude steel output of about 1.9 percent. When we look at the rates of capacity utilization, it appears that the capacity utilization rate in Turkey will remain at about 67 percent.
Dr. Yayan also highlighted the slowdown in Turkey's steel trade. In 2009, Turkey's net steel export volume was 5.9 million mt, whereas in the first nine months of 2014 the figure has fallen as low as 1.4 million mt. This situation also shows that Turkish steel traders' competitiveness has regressed compared to that of their international peers, he said.
In addition, Dr. Yayan commented on the role of China in the global steel trade. Stating, "Chinese steel demand began to decline in July this year and so Chinese steel mills started to focus on export markets, exporting 85 million mt of its 111 million mt of oversupply. In this regard, it is expected that China will increase its steel export by 37.1 percent year on year in the current year. Chinese steelmakers should note that they cannot have such a destructive access to the international markets." He said he expected Chinese steelmakers to remember this in time with the precautionary measures and investigations against them, remarking that Turkey has not initiated any such investigations yet, but stressing that the impact of Chinese exports was not at all sustainable.
Dr. Yayan concluded by saying that the Turkish steel sector can get through the current difficult times by producing high value-added products and by focusing on new ranges of products.