Crude steel production for the 64 countries reporting to the World Steel Association (worldsteel) rose 5.8% on-year in June to 151.4 million tonnes.

Output grew in all the largest producing countries, with China seeing a 7.5% increase to 80.2mt, Japan a 4.2% rise to 8.76mt and India a 7.4% growth to 8.74mt. South Korean production increased 3.2% to 6.12mt, Kallanish learns from worldsteel.

EU production inched up only 1.3% in June to 14.39mt. German output is estimated to have risen 4.6% to 3.77mt, while Italian output grew 1.5% to 2.14mt. However, French production fell -4.4% to 1.27mt. Spanish output is estimated to have risen 3.4% to 1.3mt, thereby overtaking France. Polish output fell -1.6% to 840,000t.

Turkey saw output inch up 0.7% to 3.04mt.

Russian production is estimated to have risen 8.9% in June to 6.12mt, while Ukrainian output increased 7.5% to 1.71mt.

US production inched up 0.8% to 6.85mt, but Brazilian output is estimated to have fallen -2.2% to 2.59mt.

Iranian output grew an estimated 16.5% to 2.08mt (see separate story).

Notably, Serbia registered a 76% increase in June output to 180,000t, while neighbour Bosnia saw output fall -98% to only 1,000t. Austria saw output fall -28% to 474,000t.

The crude steel capacity utilisation ratio of the 64 countries in June was 78.5%, up 3.8 percentage points versus June 2017. Compared to May 2018, it is 1.0pp higher.

Global crude steel output in the first half of 2018 thus increased 4.6% on-year to 881.46mt.