In July this year, Turkey's total steel product exports amounted to 1.4 million metric tons, falling 5.2 percent month on month and down by 9.8 percent compared to the same month of the previous year, with a total revenue of $1.1 billion, falling 2.6 percent compared to the previous month and down 11.3 percent from July 2012, according to the Turkey's Steel Exporters' Association (CIB).
The Middle East was again Turkey's largest destination for steel exports in July this year, receiving 633,000 metric tons, followed by EU countries and North Africa with 183,000 mt and 174,000 mt respectively.
According to the announcement, the falling demand from export markets and the general falling prices of commodities in international trade continues to negatively affect Turkey's steel exports. In the first seven months of the current year, Turkey's total steel product exports amounted to 11.4 million metric tons, down 2.1 percent compared to the same period last year. The revenue generated by these exports in January-July this year totaled $8.6 billion, decreasing by 7.8 percent year on year.
In the first seven months of the current year, the Middle East was Turkey's largest destination for steel exports, receiving 4.7 million metric tons. However, in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia and Egypt were the two countries with the largest year-on-year decreases in steel imports from Turkey. Steel exports to Saudi Arabia in the first seven months of 2012 amounted to 978,000 mt worth $590 million, compared to the 1.68 million mt worth $1.1 billion recorded in the same period of the previous year. Exports to Egypt which totaled 509,000 mt with a value of $350 million in the first seven months last year decreased in the same period this year to 294,000 mt worth $195 million.
In the given period, Turkey's steel product exports to the EU amounted to 1.76 million mt, while North Africa imported 1.2 million mt of steel products from Turkey.
Compared to the same period last year, in the first seven months, Turkey's exports of rebar, which ranks first among the country's exported steel products in terms of volume, amounted to 5.05 million mt, while Turkey exported 1.28 million mt of steel billet, 1.07 mt of steel pipe, 1.01 mt of hot rolled flat steel and 970,000 mt of steel section.