A total of 5.27 million tons of finished and semi-finished steel products were exported from Iran during the first eight months of the current fiscal year (March 21-Nov. 21) to register a 2.09% year-on-year growth, according to the Iranian Steel Producers Association's latest report.
Semi-finished steel made up 3.35 million tons or more than 63.58% of the total export volume, down 21% YOY.
Billet and bloom had the lion’s share of semis exports with an aggregate of 2 million tons to mark a 14% YOY decline. Slab followed with 1.35 million tons, down 29% YOY.
Exports of finished steel products surged 104% YOY to reach 1.92 million tons.
Rebar was the main exported finished product with 976,000 tons, registering a 173% jump YOY.
Following rebar were hot-rolled coil with 517,000 tons, up 39% YOY; beams with 172,000 tons, up 52% YOY; coated coil with 121,000 tons, up 181% YOY; “other steel products” with 116,000 tons, up 152% YOY; and cold-rolled coil with 18,000 tons, up 157% YOY.
Exports of direct-reduced iron decreased 21% YOY to 400,000 tons.
Iran surpassed its 8-million-ton export target in the last fiscal year (March 2017-18) by shipping 8.49 million tons of steel, up 53.4% YOY.
Iranian steelmakers have targeted 9.5 million tons for the current fiscal year (March 2018-19) and 14 million tons by the end of March 2021.
DRI Exports Resume
Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration has issued a directive to provincial customs bureaus, informing them that exports of direct-reduced iron by authorized producers and representatives are allowed after obtaining a permit from the Ministry of Industries, Mining and Trade.
Former industries minister, Mohammad Shariatmadari, had banned sponge iron exports as of Aug. 4 to provide raw materials for the country’s steel units and empower downstream industries.
However, Deputy Industries Minister Jafar Sarqeini sent a letter to the director general of IRICA on Dec. 19 and called for lifting the ban.
World Steel Association's latest data show global direct-reduced iron output increased 2.3% year-on-year to 6.69 million tons in November.
Production during the 11 months grew 10.9% year-over-year to 76.14 million tons.
Iran was the second biggest producer with 2.05 million tons of DRI production in November and 22.64 during the first 11 months of 2018.
India, Iran's primary rival in DRI output, increased its 10-month production by 2.9% YOY to 27.7 million tons.
The largest increase was in Argentina, where output increased 34.6% YOY to 1.46 million tons.
Iran was also ranked the world’s second biggest producer of DRI in 2017 with a production of 20.5 million tons and a share of 28% in the global DRI production.
Imports on the Decline
Imports of all steel products, except for billet and bloom, were down during the period compared with last year's corresponding period.
The ISPA report shows that steel imports stood at a total of 720,000 tons during the eight months to Nov. 21, down 52.76% YOY.
Semis imports made up 27,000 tons of the total figure, down 18%. Billet and bloom imports went up by 24% to 26,000 tons, as slab witnessed a staggering 92% fall to reach 1,000 tons.
Imports of finished steel dropped 54% YOY to 693,000 tons. The imports mostly included CRC with 232,000 tons, down 50%; coated coil with 196,000 tons, down 25%; HRC with 178,000 tons, down 72%; "other steel products" with 37,000 tons, down 30%; rebar with 30,000 tons, down 45%; and beams with 20,000 tons, down 17%.
13.74% Growth in Production
Iranian steelmakers produced a total of 30.87 million tons of products during the eight-month period to register a 13.74% growth compared with last year’s corresponding period.
Semi-finished steel made up 16.64 million tons of the total output, up 18% YOY.
Billet and bloom made up 9.25 million tons of all semi-finished production volume while slab output hit 7.38 million tons to register a 23% and 11% year-on-year rise respectively.
As for finished steel, output increased by 10% YOY to reach 14.23 million tons.
Hot-rolled coil had the lion's share of finished steel production with 5.55 million tons, up 9% YOY.
It was followed by rebar with 5 million tons, up 22%; cold-rolled coil with 1.65 million tons, up 5%; coated coil with 909,000 tons, down 10%; beams with 606,000 tons, down 9%; and "other steel products" with 510,000 tons, down 8%.
Iran’s direct-reduced iron production is registering a healthy growth. It stood at 17.36 million tons during the eight months, indicating a 19% rise YOY.
Semis Apparent Usage Increasing
According to ISPA, Iran's apparent steel usage—defined as production plus imports minus exports, sometimes also adjusted for changes in inventories—stood at 13.31 million tons for semis, marking a rise of 34%; and hit 13 million for finished products to show a 4% YOY decline.
Hot-rolled coil had the lion’s share of finished steel consumption as it reached 5.21 million tons, down 3% YOY. It was followed by rebar with 4.05 million tons, up 7% YOY; cold-rolled coil with 1.86 million tons, down 8% YOY; coated coil with 984,000 tons, down 20% YOY; "other steel products" with 431,000 tons, down 23%; and beams with 454,000 tons, down 21% YOY.
As for semis, usage of billet and bloom grew 39% to 7.28 million tons, while that of slab rose 27% to 6.03 million tons.
DRI usage was up 20% for the period to 16.96 million tons.
Iran aims to become the world’s sixth largest steel producer as per the 20-Year Vision Plan, which targets annual production capacity expansion to 55 million tons and 20-25 million tons of exports per year by 2025. Iranian steel mills have so far realized just over 30 million tons of the capacity target.
The country has been working to increase its iron ore processing capacity, including both DRI and hot-briquetted iron production to feed its steelmaking expansion target.
