Crude steel production in Turkey increased by 46.6 percent year on year in February this year to 3.1 million mt, according to a statement released by the Turkish Steel Producers’ Association (TCUD). In the January-February period this year, Turkey produced 6.3 million mt of crude steel, up by 34.5 percent year on year, supported by recently commissioned new capacities and due to the base effect caused by the earthquakes in February last year.
In February this year, Turkey’s finished steel consumption rose by 11.8 percent to 2.9 million mt, while in the January-February period this year its finished steel consumption increased by 15.7 percent to 6.4 million mt, both year on year.
In February, Turkey’s steel exports increased by 74.6 percent to 1.2 million mt, while the value of these exports rose by 47.2 percent to $849.9 million, year on year. In the January-February period this year, the country’s steel exports increased by 48.6 percent to 2.1 million mt, while the value of these exports rose by 28.3 percent to $1.5 billion, both year on year. Looking at the exports in terms of products, in the first two months the country’s flat and long product exports increased by 91.3 percent and 30 percent year on year to 781,700 mt and 1.2 million mt, respectively.
In February, Turkey’s steel imports decreased by 9.1 percent to 1.1 million mt, while the value of these imports moved down by 13.4 percent to $905.7 million, both year on year. In the first two months this year, the country’s steel imports increased by 1.5 percent to 2.5 million mt, while the value of these imports fell by 7.3 percent to $2.0 billion, both year on year.
In the January-February period, Turkey’s steel export to import ratio increased to 76.3 percent, from 55.1 percent recorded in the same period of the previous year.
According to the association, with the gradual recovery which started in the second half of 2023, the Turkish steel industry achieved 16.5 percent growth in the last quarter of 2023, leading to positive expectations that the growth will continue in 2024. The TCUD stated that it is important to implement safeguard measures in Turkey, such as those implemented by many countries, to sustain the increase that has accelerated since the last quarter of 2023 and to achieve the targets set by the Turkish steel industry. The statement emphasized that imports from Far Eastern countries, especially China, which has become the largest supplier to the Turkish steel market and has increased its exports to Turkey with subsidized and dumped prices, should be brought under control and that added-value production should be increased by moving away from a production structure based on imported inputs.