According to the data released by the World Steel Association (worldsteel), in 2015, among the 20 biggest steel producing countries around the world, Turkey ranked in ninth place with 31.5 million mt of crude steel output. In 2015, global steel producer ArcelorMittal, which produced 91.7 million mt of crude steel, became the biggest steelmaker in the world. ArcelorMittal was followed by Chinese steelmaker Hebei Iron and Steel Co. Ltd, Japan-based Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Metal Corporation (NSSMC) and South Korean steel producer Pohang Iron and Steel Co. (POSCO), which respectively produced 47.75 million mt, 46.37 million mt and 41.97 million mt of crude steel in the given year.
Worldsteel director general Edwin Basson stated that in 2015 concerns over excess capacity once again increased. Emphasizing the importance of restructuring, which requires appropriate industrial policy developed by governments in cooperation with industry, Mr. Basson added that in today’s economic context it is ever more crucial that policies promote a level playing field to ensure that steel companies in one region are not put at a disadvantage compared to steelmakers from other regions or in relation to competing materials.