According to a statement released by the Turkish Iron and Steel Producers' Association (DCUD), in April this year Turkey's crude steel production rose by 4.7 percent year on year and was down 7.8 percent month on month, amounting to 2.9 million mt.
In April, of the total crude steel production in Turkey, steel production using electric arc furnaces (EAF) amounted to 2.25 million mt, with an increase of 10.5 percent compared to March 2011 and decreasing 2.6 percent month on month, while production via blast furnaces rose by 11.6 percent to 640,000 mt, down 22.2 percent compared to March this year.
In the first four months of the current year, Turkey's crude steel production amounted to 11.9 million mt, up 11.4 percent year on year. In this period, Turkey's steel billet output moved up by 16.5 percent to 8.83 million mt, and its slab output fell by one percent to 3.08 million mt, both on year-on-year basis. The contrast in the trends for production volumes of the semi-finished products shows that the recent negative market conditions in flat steel sector have influenced the output volumes. The share of steel billet in total crude steel production was 74.1 percent, while the share of slab production decreased to 25.9 percent.
2009 | 2010 | 2011 | Jan-Apr 2011 | Jan-Apr 2012 | Year-on year change (%) | |
20,524 | 21,827 | 24,400 | 7,578 | 8,825 | 16.5 | |
4,779 | 7,316 | 9,707 | 3,113 | 3,082 | -1 | |
Total | 25,303 | 29,143 | 34,107 | 10,691 | 11,907 | 11.4 |
EAF | 17,741 | 20,905 | 25,275 | 7,889 | 8,907 | 12.9 |
BOF | 7,562 | 8,238 | 8,832 | 2,802 | 3,000 | 7.1 |
Tonnage figures are x 1,000 mt.
The association also noted that Turkey may see more stable crude steel output growth as of this summer in line with the stabilization of the export markets, mainly EU countries and the Middle East, as well as the increase in consumption expected in the domestic market.