Global crude steel production in March this year increased by 2.7 percent year on year to 141.34 million metric tons, while a 13.1 percent rise was observed on month-on-month basis, according to the World Steel Association (worldsteel). In the given month, the average capacity utilization of steel mills across the globe was 79 percent, 0.4 percentage points lower compared to March 2013 and 1.4 percentage points higher compared to February of the current year.
In the meantime, total global crude steel production in the first quarter of this year rose 2.5 percent compared to the same period of 2013, amounting to 405.68 million metric tons.
In March, crude steel output in Asia amounted to 95.31 million mt, up 2.6 percent, with 70.25 million mt produced by China, up 2.2 percent, 9.73 million mt produced by Japan, up 2.9 percent, and 6.13 million mt produced by South Korea, up eight percent - with all comparisons on year-on-year basis.
EU-28 countries produced 15.39 million mt of crude steel in March, up by 6.8 percent compared with March 2013. In March this year, Germany's output was 4.05 million mt, up 6.1 percent year on year, Italy's crude steel output was 2.36 million mt, up eight percent year on year, and Spain's crude steel output amounted to 1.26 million mt, up 4.1 percent year on year.
Turkey produced 2.85 million metric tons of crude steel in March this year, with a 4.3 percent decrease from the same month in 2013.
Iran's crude steel production in March this year amounted to 1.40 million mt, up 14.8 percent compared to March 2013.
The CIS registered a crude steel output of 9.24 million mt in March this year, down 1.8 percent year on year, with Russia producing 6.03 million mt, increasing 1.3 percent, and Ukraine producing 2.65 million mt, down 7.7 percent, both on year-on-year basis.
In North America in March, crude steel output totaled 10.33 million mt, up 1.7 percent year on year, with the US producing 7.41 million mt and Mexico producing 1.77 million mt, up 0.9 percent and 10.5 percent respectively on year-on-year basis.
Meanwhile, crude steel output in South America in March amounted to 3.86 million mt, unchanged from March 2013, with Brazil's output totaling 2.89 million mt, up 1.5 percent year on year.