Speaking at the 7th YISAD Flat Steel Conference & SteelOrbis Market Talks held in Istanbul on April 30, Gökhan Demiruz, chairman of Turkey's Association of Flat Steel Exporters and Manufacturers (YISAD), spoke about the Turkish steel industry’s position in world trade, stating that Turkey is in eighth position in global crude steel production and ranks sixth in steel exports in the global market. Stating that Turkey imports more than 20 million mt of scrap and over 10 million mt of iron ore per year, Mr. Demiruz indicated that global steel trade in 2018 totaled 500 million mt. He went on to say that flat steel has a special place in the steel industry in terms of the distribution chain and end-users.
Sharing data from the Turkish Steel Producers Association (TCUD) for flat steel production and consumption volumes in Turkey, the YISAD official stated that in 2006 Turkish flat steel production totaled 4 million mt and consumption was nearly 10.7 million mt, increasing to respective figures of 13 million mt and 17.8 million mt in 2017 and to 13.4 million mt and 14.8 million mt in 2018. He also stated that Turkey’s flat steel exports in the first three months of this year totaled 1.74 million mt.
Mr. Demiruz underlined three important issues in the global steel industry. One of these issues is communication among market players. He stated that it is possible to increase steel exports and reduce imports by strengthening the conversation. The second issue is the expansion of trade measures in the global market. According to Demiruz, the Turkish flat steel sector is negatively impacted by the situation in the US, while he said that all the negative factors which may possibly impact Turkey’s flat exports to the EU should be eliminated. Stating that non-governmental organizations and exporting companies must collaborate on this issue, he said that authorities in export markets should be convinced that, given its lack of raw material resources, it is not possible for Turkey to harm local producers in the global market by adopting an aggressive pricing strategy. He concluded by saying that the last important issue for the Turkish steel market is the need for investments and projects in order to increase exports.