Global crude steel production in May this year decreased by 0.2 percent year on year and increased by three percent month on month to 139 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 71.3 percent, 1.0 percentage point lower compared to May 2015 and down 0.1 percentage point compared to the previous month.
In the January-May period of this year, global crude steel production decreased to 658.2 million mt, down 2.2 percent year on year.
In May, crude steel output in China amounted to 70.5 million mt, up 1.8 percent, with 8.8 million mt produced by Japan, down 0.9 percent, 8 million mt produced by India, increasing by 4.9 percent, and 5.8 million mt produced by South Korea, decreasing by 3.5 percent - with all comparisons on year-on-year basis.
In May, Germany's output was 3.9 million mt, rising by four percent year on year, Italy's crude steel output totaled 2.2 million mt, up 9.3 percent year on year, and France's crude steel output amounted to 1.2 million mt, decreasing by 18.8 percent year on year.
Turkey produced 3 million metric tons of crude steel in May, with a 5.4 percent increase year on year. Iran's crude steel production in the given month amounted to 1.65 million mt, up 13 percent year on year. In May, Russia produced 6 million mt, up by 0.4 percent year on year, and Ukraine produced 2.3 million mt, rising 5.7 percent, both on year-on-year basis.
In the given month, crude steel output in the US totaled 6.8 million mt, down 0.4 percent, while Mexico produced 1.57 million mt of crude steel, down 4.1 percent, both on year-on-year basis. Crude steel output in Brazil in May this year amounted to 2.6 million mt, down 13.2 percent year on year.