According to the preliminary data, in January 2009 steel product deliveries in the Russian domestic market decreased by 1.4 percent to 1.36 million metric tons compared with December 2008.
Meanwhile, deliveries of billets and semi-finished steel products in the Russian domestic market increased by 0.9 percent month on month to 223,000 mt, while shipments of flat steel products rose by 21.8 percent to 343,600 mt. However, deliveries of steel pipes in the first month of 2009 decreased by 15.1 percent to 237,500 mt, while shipments of long steel products went down by 3.6 percent to 507,600 mt, both compared to December 2008.