Iran’s steel output rises due to exports

Iran’s steel output in the form of ingots and billet hit 4.690 thousand tons in the first three months of Iranian calendar year (started on March 19), rising by 4 percent comparing to similar period last year, he said.

He said Iran’s steel output in the first six months of 2016 jumped by 5.2 percent comparing to similar period last year.

Rise in Iran's steel production has pushed the country up on the list of global steel producers, the World Steel Association (worldsteel) announced in June.

The new data shows Iran ranks thirteenth on the list of 66 global steel producers after the country produced 1.645 million tons of the metal in May.

The international trade body for the iron and steel industry has released its latest figures on global production, which shows a solid gain for Iran.

The figure indicates a rise from the same period last year, when Iran had produced 1.455 million tons of steel.

Iran’s 3.9-percentage point increase comes as the global output suffered a decline of 2.2 percent in the first five months of this year.

China, Japan and India topped the latest worldsteel list.

Iran is the biggest steel producer in the Middle East after Turkey, according to the World Steel Association. Output rose to 1.5 million tons in April from 1.3 million tons at the end of last year before the international sanctions were lifted in January.

The country has already devised serious plans to increase its steel production capacity to 55 million tons per year from the current level of roughly 17 million tons per year by 2025. The country’s export capacity is also expected to rise to above 13 million tons per year.

Source: ISNA