Global steel production totaled 152.7 million metric tons during July, increasing 2.7% from June as most of the world resumes manufacturing and construction programs following widespread outages undertaken to address the spread of the Coronavirus. Even so, total year-to-date raw steel output remains down -5.3% versus the comparable 2019 result, at 1.03 billion metric tons for January-July 2020.
The results are supplied by the World Steel Assn., the trade association representing steelmakers worldwide. World Steel's report is a monthly summary of raw steel output in 64 countries: "Raw steel" is the product of basic-oxygen or electric arc furnaces, and cast into semi-finished forms like billets for bar and rod products; slabs for flat products; or blooms, for beam and pipe products. The report covers carbon steel only; stainless and specialty steel producers comprise a separate market.
China's steel production volume stands in contrast to the global trend. Chinese steelmakers have rebounded aggressively from a shutdown in March, posting 93.6 million metric tons produced during July, up 1.9% from June but up 9.1% from July's 2019 result. Through the first seven months of 2020, China's steel industry has produce 593.2 million metric tons, which is 2.8% above its January-July 2019 output.
Most of rest of the world's major steelmaking nations have begun to increase their output, though the industry has a whole was enduring reduced demand prior to the pandemic outbreak. The World Steel Assn. in June forecast that 2020 global steel demand will drop -6.4% year-over-year, declining to 1.654 billion metric tons, and then rise 3.8% year-over-year to 1.717 billion metric tons for 2021.
Other than China, the world's major steelmaking nations remain well-behind their July 2019 output: India, -24.6%; Japan, -27.9%, Russia, -5.0%; and South Korea, -8.3%. The European Union's year-to-date output is down-24.4% year over year and -19.2% year-to-date, with most of the major producing nations in that region also posting double-digit declines.
U.S. raw-steel production during July rose 5.9% over June to 5.24 million metric tons (5.78 million short tons), which is -29.4% lower than the July 2019 total. For the January-July period, U.S. raw-steel output stands at 41.64 million metric tons (45.9 million short tons), down -19.5% from the seven-month total for 2019.