World crude steel production for the 65 countries reporting to the World Steel Association (worldsteel) was 128 million tonnes (Mt) in February 2015, a 0.6% increase compared to February 2014.
China’s crude steel production for February 2015 was estimated at 65.0 Mt. The total production for January and February 2015 in China has been confirmed at 130.5 Mt. Elsewhere in Asia, Japan produced 8.4 Mt of crude steel in February 2015, a decrease of -0.2% compared to February 2014. South Korea’s crude steel production was 5.1 Mt, down by -4.4% on February 2014.
In the EU, Germany produced 3.5 Mt of crude steel in February 2015, a decrease of -1.6% compared to February 2014. Italy produced 2.0 Mt of crude steel, down by -9.7% on February 2014. France’s crude steel production was 1.3 Mt, a decrease of -1.6% compared to February 2014. Spain produced 1.1 Mt of crude steel, down by -4.4% compared to February 2014.
Turkey’s crude steel production for February 2015 was 2.4 Mt, down by -12.2% on February 2014.
In February 2015, Russia produced 5.7 Mt of crude steel, up by 5.6% over February 2014. Ukraine produced 1.6 Mt of crude steel, down by -33.2% compared to the same month 2014.
The US produced 6.3 Mt of crude steel in February 2015, a decrease of -7.9% compared to February 2014.
Brazil’s crude steel production for February 2015 was 2.7 Mt, up by 2.3% on February 2014.
The crude steel capacity utilisation ratio for the 65 countries in February 2015 was 73.4%. It is -1.7 percentage points lower than February 2014. Compared to January 2015, it is 3.8 percentage points higher.
Presumably this data is seasonally adjusted, otherwise the China figures make no sense give the CNY shutdown in February. Over the first two months of the year global production was essentially flat.
David Llewellyn-Smith is Chief Strategist at the MB Fund and MB Super. David is the founding publisher and editor of MacroBusiness and was the founding publisher and global economy editor of The Diplomat, the Asia Pacific’s leading geo-politics and economics portal.
He is also a former gold trader and economic commentator at The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, the ABC and Business Spectator. He is the co-author of The Great Crash of 2008 with Ross Garnaut and was the editor of the second Garnaut Climate Change Review.
