Turkiye’s crude steel production in the January-June period decreased by 16.3% compared to the same period of the previous year and became 15.9 million tons.
The Turkish steel industry completed the first half of the year with a decrease in production and an increase in consumption.
Turkiye’s crude steel production decreased by 1.5% in June compared to the same month of the previous year and fell to 2.9 million tons. In the first half of the year, production decreased by 16,3% to 15,9 million tons.
Final product consumption, on the other hand, increased by 27.4% to 3.3 million tons in June compared to the same month of the previous year, and reached 19.9 million tons with an increase of 15.8% in the first half of the year.
Foreign trade data
Exports of steel products decreased to 875.9 thousand tons with a decrease of 40.8% in terms of quantity compared to the same month of the previous year, and to $740 million with a decrease of 52% in terms of value.
In the January-June period, compared to the same period of 2022, exports amounted to 4.5 million tons with a decrease of 46.5% in terms of quantity, and decreased by 52.5% in terms of value to $3.9 billion.
Steel products imports, on the other hand, increased by 12.1% in terms of quantity to 1.5 million tons in June compared to the same month of the previous year. In terms of value, imports decreased by 9.6% to $1.3 billion.
Imports reached 9.5 million tons in the January-June period, with an increase of 23% in quantity compared to the same period of 2022. In terms of value, imports decreased by 4.3% to $8.1 billion.
The ratio of exports to imports, which was 96.7% in the first half of last year, was recorded as 47.9% in the first half of this year.
“Imports increased in long products”
TCUD Secretary General Veysel Yayan said that Turkiye, which was 8th in the world with 19 million tons of crude steel production in the first half of last year, ranked 10th in the same period of this year.
Emphasizing that the Kahramanmaras-centered earthquakes that took place on February 6 were also effective in this decline, Yayan said, “Despite the 16.3% decline in Turkiye’s crude steel production, there was an increase in demand in the domestic market with the effect of the activities for the reconstruction of the earthquake zone. Despite the 15.8% increase in consumption in the January-June period, the 23% increase in imports shows that the need is met through imports.”
Yayan stated that with the 82.5% increase in wire rod imports in the first half of the year, the sector’s long-product imports increased by 43.4%.
Stating that the extraordinary increase in imports of long products, of which Turkiye is a net exporter, increased the foreign trade deficit of the sector, Yayan said:
“The fact that Asian countries such as China, India, South Korea, and Indonesia, whose competitiveness has increased due to falling energy costs, gradually increase their share in Turkiye’s traditional markets, especially in Europe, reduce our steel exports and at the same time increase our steel imports by turning to our country at dumped prices, has posed a threat to our steel foreign trade. In order to prevent the increasing imports of dumped and poor quality products to our country and to restore the exports of our sector to their former levels, it is vital for our country to implement measures similar to the protection measures implemented by many countries, especially the USA and the EU, both for our steel foreign trade and for the economy of our country.”
Source: Trthaber / Prepared by Irem Yildiz