Crude Decline
The World Steel Association (WSA) announced on June 1 that 65 major steel-making countries around the world produced 135.407 million tons of crude steel in April this year to post a 1.7 percent decrease from a year ago.
It was the United States that recorded the steepest decline. The United States’ crude steel production volume fell by 9.8 percent to 6.450 million tons during the same period, and that of Korea decreased by 6.6 percent, the highest percentage in Asia, to 5.788 million tons. That of Japan decreased by 6.1 percent to 8.402 million tons, too.
Meanwhile, the crude steel production volume of China, where steel industry restructuring is underway, declined by just 0.7 percent to 68.909 million tons. This rate of decrease was the lowest in Asia. India, which is emerging rapidly as a major crude steel producer, was the only country in the continent that increased its crude steel output in April this year. Specifically, its volume went up by 2.1 percent year-on-year to reach 7.433 million tons. During the first four months of this year, the 65 countries’ combined crude steel production added up to a total of 536.485 million tons, 1.7 percent down compared to the same period last year.