On December 21, the World Steel Association (worldsteel) announced world crude steel production results for November and for the first eleven months of the year.
According to the worldsteel report, world crude steel production for the 66 countries surveyed was 107.48 million mt in November, increasing by 24.2 percent year on year and down 5.23 percent compared to the previous month. November 2009 was the third month in a row showing a positive year-on-year growth rate and just the third month indicating a year-on-year increase since September 2008. Meanwhile, the six-month trend of month-on-month increases in world steel production came to a halt in November this year.
Meanwhile, world crude steel production in the January-November period totaled 1.09 billion mt, decreasing by 10.8 percent compared to the same period of the previous year.
The world crude steel capacity utilization ratio in November was 75 percent, a slight decline from 76.9 percent in October this year. Compared to November 2008, the utilization ratio in November this year increased by 10.4 percentage points.
In November, China's crude steel production amounted to 47.26 million mt, rising by 37.4 percent compared to November last year. Japan produced 8.86 million mt of crude steel in the month in question, up by 0.5 percent compared to November last year, while South Korea showed an increase of 7.5 percent year on year, producing 4.32 million mt of crude steel. India's crude steel output in the month in question totaled 4.77 million mt, up 4.7 percent year on year.
In the EU, Germany's November crude steel output was 3.54 million mt, with an increase of eight percent, while Italy produced 1.92 million mt - down 17.2 percent, Spain produced 1.55 million mt - up 43 percent, and French crude steel output showed a increase of 27.2 percent, with 1.31 million mt, all compared to November 2008.
The US produced 5.96 million mt of crude steel in November, with an increase of 26.9 percent, while Brazil produced 2.68 million mt of crude steel, up 15.1 percent, both compared to the same month last year.
Meanwhile, Russia's crude steel output in November this year was 5.32 million mt, an increase of 42.6 percent from November 2008, while Ukraine produced 2.67 million mt of crude steel, 67.1 percent higher year on year.
Turkey produced 2.14 million mt of crude steel in November, up 18.3 percent from November last year.
In the month in question Iran produced 860,000 mt of crude steel, 3.5 percent less than in November 2008.
With respect to crude steel production by region, in the first eleven months of 2009, the EU-27 produced 126.31 million mt of crude steel, down 33.2 percent, CIS countries produced 88.47 million mt of crude steel, down 18.4 percent, North America produced 74.61 million mt of crude steel, decreasing by 37.4 percent, while South America produced a total of 34.11 million mt, down 24.3 percent, all compared to the same period of the previous year. Meanwhile, the crude steel output of Africa reached 13.48 million mt in the same period, down 16 percent year on year. In January-November this year, the crude steel production of the Middle East totaled 15.2 million mt, up 2.6 percent, while Asia produced 706.8 million mt, up two percent, both compared to the corresponding period of 2008.
