Global steel product exports saw a significant increase in 2023, climbing 6.4% to 402.8 million metric tons (mt), as per the latest figures from the World Steel Association. The report, released on June 6, 2024, highlights that the most exported steel product was hot-rolled sheets and coils, which surged 11.2% to 75.6 million mt, followed by ingots and semi-finished materials at 53.2 million mt, marking a 19.3% increase.
Other notable exports included 41 million mt of galvanized sheets, up 6.8%, and 36.5 million mt of steel tubes and fittings, which rose by 6.7%. Steel plates exports grew by 9.3% to 35.2 million mt. However, cold-rolled sheets and coils experienced a slight decline, dropping 1.6% to 30.3 million mt.
On the production front, global crude steel output marginally increased by 0.1% to 1.89 billion mt in 2023. The production was primarily led by blast oxygen furnaces, accounting for 71.1% of total production, with electric arc furnaces contributing 28.6%.
China remained the dominant player in both exporting and producing steel, with exports totaling 94.3 million mt and production reaching 1 billion mt. Other leading exporters included Japan with 32.2 million mt, South Korea with 27 million mt, the European Union with 26 million mt, and Germany with 22.5 million mt.
The European Union was the top importer, bringing in 39.2 million mt, followed by the U.S. at 26.4 million mt, and Germany and Italy each importing 18.7 million mt. Turkey also featured prominently with 18 million mt of imports. The report noted that the EU’s trade figures exclude intra-regional trade, whereas the figures for Germany and Italy include trade within Europe.
