According to a statement released by the Turkish Steel Producers’ Association (TCUD), in August this year crude steel production in Turkey increased by 7.9 percent year on year to 3.39 million mt, while in the first eight months production rose by 0.2 percent year on year to 24.87 million mt. In August, Turkey’s billet and slab production amounted to 2.12 million mt and 1.26 million mt, up 7.6 percent and 8.1 percent year on year, respectively. In the January-August period, Turkey produced 15.77 million mt of billet, up 3.7 percent, against 9.1 million mt of slab, down 5.2 percent, both compared to the same period of 2024.
In the given month, finished steel consumption in Turkey rose by 12.5 percent year on year to 3.48 million mt, while in the January-August period the country’s finished steel consumption increased by 3.2 percent year on year to 25.75 million mt.
In August, Turkey’s steel exports rose by 6.8 percent to 1.24 million mt, while the value of these exports decreased by 1.2 percent to $831.25 million, year on year. In the first eight months, the country’s steel exports rose by 12.8 percent to 10.03 million mt, while the value of these exports increased by 4.4 percent to $6.82 billion, both year on year. Flat and long product exports in the January-August period amounted to 4.36 million mt and 5.23 million mt, respectively, with increases of 10.0 percent and 10.8 percent year on year, while semi-finished product exports amounted to 439,843 mt.
In the eighth month of the current year, Turkey’s steel imports increased by 18.6 percent to 1.56 million mt, while the value of these imports moved up by 2.9 percent to $1.06 billion, both year on year. In the January-August period, the country’s steel imports increased by 17.9 percent to 12.64 million mt, while the value of these imports moved up by 3.6 percent to $8.85 billion, both year on year. Looking at the imported products, flat and long product imports in the first eight months amounted to 6.01 million mt and 1.04 million mt, respectively, with increases of 9.6 percent and 12.7 percent year on year, while semi-finished product imports amounted to 5.58 million mt.
In the first eight months, Turkey’s steel export to import ratio increased to 76.44 percent, from 77.02 percent recorded in the same period of the previous year.
According to the TCUD, steel imports increased by 577 percent in the last three months. The majority of total imports were under the inward processing regime. In the January-August period, 59 percent of Turkey's steel imports and 75.7 percent of its semi-finished goods imports were done under the regime. Looking at the countries, 95.5 percent of imports from Russia, 81.9 percent from China, and 81.4 percent from India were under DIR.
This rapid increase in Turkey’s imports, which only utilizes 62.7 percent of its 60 million mt capacity, has raised serious concerns in the sector. The association stated that directing the profits generated by the efficient operation of existing capacities to investments aimed at producing higher value-added products can only be achieved by limiting uncontrolled imports. In this context, the TCUD considers the Ministry of Trade’s mandate that 25 percent of the raw materials used in exported products under the inward processing regime be sourced from the local market, a step toward reducing imbalances stemming from the regime, is a positive step. The association stated that this practice should be expanded to include all sectors using steel products.
Turkey's crude steel production - August 2025
