According to the World Steel in Figures 2025 report released by the World Steel Association (worldsteel), in 2024 global finished and semi-finished steel exports amounted to 449.2 million mt, up 5.1 percent compared to 2023.
In the given year, China was the leading steel exporting country with 117 million mt, up 24.2 percent year on year. China was followed by Japan with 31.2 million mt, down 3.1 percent and South Korea with 28 million mt, up 3.7 percent. EU-27 countries were led by Germany with 22.6 million mt of steel exported in 2024, up 0.4 percent compared to 2023, while Turkey exported 17 million mt of steel, up 33.9 percent year on year.
Top 10 steel exporters - 2023-2024
On the other hand, in 2024 the US imported 27.3 million of steel, up 3.4 percent year on year, followed by Turkey with 19.7 million mt, up 9.4 percent, and Italy with 18.5 million mt, down 1.1 percent.
Top 10 steel importers - 2023-2024
In the given year, the leading net steel importers were the US with 18.6 million mt, Mexico with 14.3 million mt and Thailand with a 12 million mt deficit, while China, Japan and South Korea exported 108.4 million mt, 25 million mt and 13.8 million mt more steel than they imported, respectively.