Global crude steel production in June this year decreased by 2.2 percent month on month and rose by 5.8 percent year on year to 151.4 million metric tons, according to the World Steel Association (worldsteel). In the given month, the average capacity utilization of steel mills across the globe was 78.5 percent, up 3.8 percentage points compared to June 2017 and rising by one percentage point compared to May.
In the January-June period of this year, global crude steel production increased to 881.5 million mt, up 4.6 percent year on year.
In June this year, crude steel output in Asia amounted to 107.37 million mt, rising by 6.9 percent, with 80.19 million mt produced by China, up 7.5 percent, 8.76 million mt produced by Japan, increasing by 4.2 percent, 8.74 million mt produced by India, increasing by 7.4 percent, and 6.12 million mt produced by South Korea, rising by 3.2 percent - with all comparisons on year-on-year basis.
EU-28 countries produced 14.39 million mt of crude steel in June, up 1.3 percent year on year. In June, Germany's output was 3.77 million mt, rising by 4.6 percent year on year, Italy's crude steel output was 2.13 million mt, up 1.5 percent year on year, and France's crude steel output amounted to 1.26 million mt, down 4.4 percent year on year.
Turkey produced 3.04 million metric tons of crude steel in June, with a 0.7 percent increase from June last year. Iran's crude steel production in June amounted to 2.08 million mt, up 16.5 percent year on year. The CIS registered a crude steel output of 8.53 million mt in June, increasing by 7.8 percent on year-on-year basis, with Russia producing 6.12 million mt, rising by 8.9 percent, and Ukraine producing 1.71 million mt, up 7.5 percent, both on year-on-year basis.
In North America in June, crude steel output totaled 9.57 million mt, decreasing by 0.9 percent, with the US producing 6.85 million mt, rising by 0.8 percent, and Mexico producing 1.68 million mt, down 0.8 percent, all on year-on-year basis. Crude steel output in South America in June amounted to 3.39 million mt, down 0.4 percent from June last year, with Brazil's output totaling 2.59 million mt, decreasing by 2.2 percent year on year.