Crude steel production was up 10pc in Q1 2021 globally at 486.9mn mt compared to the prior-year quarter, according to the World Steel Association (Worldsteel). Global steel production for March increased by 15.2pc to 169.2mn mt from the same month last year.
Asia
Production in Asia and Oceania was 13.2pc higher in Q1 at 356.9mn mt from the previous year’s quarter. The continent’s March 2021 production rose 17.6pc to 123.8mn mt.
China produced 94mn mt of crude steel in March 2021, bringing its total Q1 2021 output to 271mn mt. In terms of percentage increase, output was up 19.1pc from the same month last year and 15.6pc from the prior-year quarter.
Total Q1 2021 production in India rose by 10.4pc to 29.6mn mt and was 23.9pc higher in March at 10mn mt. Japan’s first-quarter production declined by 1.7 pc to 23.7mn mt but increased by 4.6pc in March to 8.3mn mt from the prior-year month.
South Korea’s Q1 2021 output was up 3.8pc at 17.6mn mt from last year and increased by 4.7pc from March last year to 6.1mn mt last month.
North America
North America’s crude steel production in the first three months of 2021 was 28.1mn mt, a decrease of 5.2pc from the first quarter of 2020. The region’s March 2021 output was flat rising 0.1pc from the same month last year at 9.7mn mt.
Quarterly output in the United States declined by 6.3pc to 20.4mn mt in Q12021 compared to the same period last year. In terms of monthly volumes, output was up 1pc at 7.1mn mt in March against March 2020.
South America
The continent’s total production for Q1 2021 increased by 7.1pc at 10.9mn mt compared to the same quarter last year. On a monthly basis, South America produced 3.6mn mt in March, which was 8.1pc higher than the same month during the last year.
Brazil produced 8.7mn mt of crude steel in Q1, an increase of 6.2pc from the same 2020 quarter. The country’s monthly output in March was up 4.1pc at 2.8mn mt from March 2020.
Europe
At 37.8mn mt, the EU (27) countries produced 3.1pc more crude steel in Q1 2021 than the same prior-year quarter. At the same time, production in other European nations was up 8.3pc at 12.6mn mt. EU (27) and other European countries recorded higher monthly outputs at 13.6mn mt and 4.4mn mt in March, which increased 17.5pc and 10.5pc, respectively.
Germany produced 10mn mt of crude steel in the first quarter, an increase of 1.7pc from the same prior-year quarter. The country’s estimated production for March 2021 was 3.6mn mt, a 10.4pc increase from the same month last year.
Turkey produced 9.5pc more crude steel in Q1 2021 at 9.8mn mt than Q1 2020. It produced 3.4mn mt of crude steel last month, up 9.2pc from March 2020.
CIS
Crude steel production in the CIS was 3.1pc higher in this quarter at 26.2mn mt than the previous year’s first quarter. The Commonwealth’s March crude steel production was up 7pc at 9.1mn mt compared to the same month last year.
Russia produced 18.9mn mt of steel in Q1 2021, an increase of 4.4pc. However, the country’s output for March this year is estimated at 6.6mn mt a 9.4pc drop compared to the same prior-year month.
Middle East
Quarterly production in the Middle East rose by 3.2pc to 10.5mn mt from the same period last year. In comparison, the region produced 6.6pc more crude steel in March 2021 at 3.6mn mt against the same month of the previous year.
Iran reported a total Q1 2021 output of 7.5mn mt, a 10.7pc increase from the prior year’s quarter. The country’s monthly crude steel output last month was estimated at 2.6mn mt, a 10.7pc increase from March 2020.
Africa
Africa’s total crude steel output for the first three months of 2021 was up 3.4pc from the same period last year at 3.9mn mt. The continent recorded a 25.9pc increase in production for March at 1.5mn mt from the same month in 2020.