Global crude steel production in August this year decreased by three percent year on year and was up by 0.5 percent month on month to 132.33 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 68 percent, 3.6 percentage points lower compared to August 2014 and down 0.4 percentage points compared to July this year.
In the January-August period of this year, global crude steel production decreased to approximately 1.07 billion mt, down 2.3 percent year on year.
In August this year, crude steel output in Asia amounted to 91.5 million mt, down 2.9 percent, with 66.94 million mt produced by China, down 3.5 percent, 8.8 million mt produced by Japan, decreasing by 5.8 percent, 7.66 million mt produced by India, up 2.8 percent, and 5.92 million mt produced by South Korea, increasing by 4.9 percent - with all comparisons on year-on-year basis.
EU-28 countries produced 12.15 million mt of crude steel in August, up 0.1 percent year on year. In August, Germany's output was 3.43 million mt, rising by 10.7 percent year on year, Italy's crude steel output was 998,000 mt, rising by 1.3 percent year on year, and France's crude steel output amounted to 1.04 million mt, down 1.5 percent year on year.
Turkey produced 2.56 million metric tons of crude steel in August, with a 11.8 percent decrease from the same month in 2014. Iran's crude steel production in August this year amounted to 1.25 million mt, down 6.2 percent year on year. The CIS registered a crude steel output of 8.6 million mt in August, down one percent year on year, with Russia producing 6.05 million mt, decreasing by 3.2 percent, and Ukraine producing 1.92 million mt, up 8.6 percent, both on year-on-year basis.
In North America in August, crude steel output totaled 9.73 million mt, down 8.3 percent, with the US producing 7 million mt, decreasing by 9.7 percent, and Mexico producing 1.52 million mt, down 7.1 percent, all year-on-year basis. Crude steel output in South America in August amounted to 3.78 million mt, down 1.9 percent from August 2014, with Brazil's output totaling 2.8 million mt, decreasing by 5.4 percent year on year.