The World Steel Association has release its January figures and it’s more worrying news for iron ore followers:
World crude steel production for the 65 countries reporting to the World Steel Association (worldsteel) was 130 million tonnes (Mt) in January 2014, a decrease of -0.4% compared to January 2013.
China’s crude steel production for January 2014 was 61.6 Mt, down by -3.2% compared to January 2013. Elsewhere in Asia, Japan produced 9.4 Mt of crude steel in January 2014, an increase of 6.1% over January 2013. South Korea’s crude steel production was 6.0 Mt in January 2014, up by 1.9% on January 2013.
In the EU, Germany produced 3.7 Mt of crude steel in January 2014, an increase of 2.2% compared to January 2013. Italy produced 2.2 Mt of crude steel, up by 27.8% compared to January 2013. Spain’s crude steel production was 1.1 Mt, an increase of 11.1% on January 2013. The UK produced 1.1 Mt of crude steel, up by 31.5% compared to January 2013.
Turkey’s crude steel production for January 2014 was 2.8 Mt, down by -0.9% on January 2013.
In January 2014, Russia produced 5.9 Mt of crude steel, an increase of 4.1% compared to the same month 2013. Ukraine’s production was 2.5 Mt in January 2014, down by -13.5% on January 2013.
The US produced 7.3 Mt of crude steel in January 2014, down by -0.5% on January 2013.
Brazil’s crude steel production for January 2014 was 2.7 Mt, a decrease of -1.4% compared to January 2013.
The crude steel capacity utilisation ratio for the 65 countries in January 2014 was 74.4% and it is 2.5 percentage points lower compared to January 2013. It is 0.2 percentage points higher than December 2013.
Japan is helping but the emerging markets crisis is taking its toll. The usual caveat of volatile seasonal adjustments around Chinese New Year apply.
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.
