Iran’s exports of mineral products during the first month of the current fiscal year (March 21-April 20) stood at $667.58 million, latest data released by the Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization show.
The exports show a 193% growth in value year-on-year.
According to IMIDRO, steel and steel-related products topped the list of exports in terms of value with $406.35 million. They were followed by copper and downstream products with $55.68 million and cement with $44.56 million.
Pottery, bricks, ceramic and tile exports saw the biggest jump in terms of value (2,038% YOY) to reach $2.52 million, followed by tin and related products with $10,742 (up 1,031% YOY).
Apart from iron ore concentrate and mica whose exports dropped to zero, the sharpest fall in export value was recorded for ferrosilicon (down 30% YOY to reach $1.73 million).
As for the biggest importers of Iran’s mineral products during the period under review, China with $183 million, Iraq with $110 million, Turkey with $73 million, Indonesia with $63 million, Ghana with $45 million, Thailand with $38 million, Afghanistan with $27 million, Algeria with $24 million, the UAE with $21 million and India with $13 million were the main export destinations.
The IMIDRO report shows import of mineral products stood at $245.65 million during the same period. The imports show a 72% growth in value compared with the same period of the year before.
Steel and steel-related products also topped the list of mineral imports in terms of value with $77.59 million. They were followed by ferromanganese with $29.83 million, and pottery products, bricks, ceramics and tiles with $19.59 million worth of imports.
The value of manganese ore imports saw the biggest jump (2021% YOY) to reach $3.03 million.
Iran’s mineral reserves currently stand at around 60 billion tons, more than half of which are proven. The country is home to 68 types of minerals.
According to the United States Geological Survey, Iran holds the world's largest zinc, ninth largest copper, 10th largest iron ore, fifth largest gypsum and barite, and 10th largest uranium reserves.
Overall, Iran is home to more than 7% of global mineral reserves.
Mineral Exports in Fiscal 2020-21
Iran’s export of mineral products during the last fiscal year (ended March 2021) stood at 55 million tons worth $7.6 billion.
The exports showed a 21% and 11% decline in total volume and value year-on-year respectively.
According to IMIDRO, steel topped the list of exports in terms of value with $4.1 billion and was followed by copper with $958 million and cement with $758 million.
In terms of tonnage, cement had the largest share with 24.3 million tons, followed by steel with 9.69 million tons.
Alumina powder exports saw the biggest jump in terms of value (335% YOY) to reach $1.8 million, followed by aluminum products with $321 million (up 177% YOY).
The sharpest fall in export value was recorded for pellet (down 93% YOY to reach $14.3 million) and iron ore in (down 89% YOY to reach $32.4 million).
In terms of tonnage, aluminum products posted the biggest growth (183% YOY) to reach 171,000 tons, followed by alumina powder (up 163% YOY to reach 880 tons) and zinc products (up 48% YOY to reach 209,000 tons).
Precious metals and minerals (such as gold and silver) had the sharpest decline in tonnage (down 97% YOY).
The IMIDRO report also shows the import of mineral products stood at 4.15 million tons worth $3.4 billion during the same period. The imports show a 13% increase in total volume and a 6% growth in value compared with the same period of the year before.
Steel also topped the list of mineral imports in terms of value with $1.3 billion and was followed by coal and coke with $300 million worth of imports. Aluminum products with $290 million came next.
In terms of tonnage, steel topped the list with 1.217 million tons, followed by coal and coke with 1.21 million tons, alumina powder with 314,000 tons and aluminum products with 168,000 tons.
The value of steel products imports saw the biggest jump (39% YOY) to reach $1.37 million.
World’s 10th Biggest Steelmaker
Iranian steel mills produced a total of 10 million tons of crude steel in the first four months of 2021, which indicate a 9.6% rise compared with 2020.
According to the latest report released by the World Steel Association, Iran's April output amounted to 2.5 million tons, up 6.4%.
The report ranks Iran the world’s 10th biggest crude steel producer. China was the world’s largest crude steel producer in the four-month period with 374.6 million tons of steel output, up 15.8% YOY.
It was followed by India with 38.2 million tons (up 26.9%), Japan with 31.5 million tons (up 2.7%), the United States with 27.3 million tons (up 2.8%), Russia with 25.5 million tons (up 7.1%), South Korea with 23.4 million tons (up 6.5%), Germany with 13.5 million tons (up 9%) and Turkey with 13.1 million tons (up 16.9%).
Iran is placed after Brazil (ninth) with 11.8 million tons, 15.9% higher than the corresponding period of 2020.
The world’s 64 steelmakers produced a total of 662.8 million tons of steel over the four months, up 13.7% YOY. Countries located in Asia and Oceania collectively produced 487.8 million tons of the total.
The Middle East produced 14.1 million tons of crude steel in the four months under review, posting an increase of 18.2% compared with the same period of last year.
Global steel output experienced a 23.3% growth in April to 169.5 million tons.
World's major steel producers seem to have recovered their output in 2021, after the global closure of businesses and disruption in industrial operations, as a result of Covid-19 spread in early 2019.
Crude steel is defined as steel in its first solid (or usable) form: ingots and semi-finished products (billets, blooms and slabs). This is not to be confused with liquid steel, which is steel poured.
The World Steel Association is one of the largest and most dynamic industry associations in the world, with members in every major steel-producing country. Worldsteel represents steel producers, national and regional steel industry associations, and steel research institutes. Members represent around 85% of global steel production.
Iranian steel mills produced a total of 29.02 million tons of crude steel in 2020, which indicate a 13.35% rise compared with 2019, the highest growth in output in the list of world's top 10 producers.
Strong Growth in Production, Export
The Iranian steel industry recorded strong growth rates both in production and exports during the first month of the current fiscal year (started March 21).
Iranian steelmakers produced 4.5 million tons of semi-finished and finished steel products during the period.
According to the Iranian Steel Producers Association’s latest report, semis accounted for 2.8 million tons of the total output, up 20% YOY.
Billet and bloom made up 1.675 million tons of semi-finished production whereas slab output reached 1.13 million tons to register a 28% and 9% YOY rise, respectively.
The output of finished steel also increased by 20% YOY to 1.74 million tons.
Long steel products had a 939-ton share in the output of finished steel products, posting a 42% growth YOY.
Rebar production stood at 759,000 tons (up 46% YOY). It was followed by beams with 108,000 tons (up 27% YOY) and L-beam, T-beam and other types with 72,000 tons (up 31% YOY).
Production of flat steel picked up during the month under review, 1% year-on-year to 810,000 tons.
Hot-rolled coil made up 794,000 tons of the production in this category, showing a 1% rise compared with the similar period of last year, followed by cold-rolled coil with 205,000 tons (up 4% YOY) and coated coil with 124,000 tons (up 70%).
Iran's output of direct reduced iron also grew by 15% to 3.02 million tons, ISPA’s data show.
MSC Performance
Mobarakeh Steel Company, the largest steel producer of Iran, recorded further growth in its semi-finished steel output during the first month of the current fiscal year (ended April 20). Producing 972,276 tons of semi-finished products, the company topped the list of Iranian steel mills.
MSC also topped the list of steel producers in finished steel products. Along with its subsidiary Saba Steel Company, it produced 718,900 tons of finished steel during the month under review, according to the latest figures released by IMIDRO.
Located in southwestern Isfahan, Mobarakeh Steel Company is the biggest steel producer in Iran and the Middle East and North Africa region.
MSC produced more than 700,000 tons of slab during the month, which is the highest monthly output recorded in the company’s history. The figure is 38,000 tons higher than the previous month’s output, according to MSC officials.
In terms of semis production, MSC was followed by Khuzestan Steel Company with 330,000 tons of output during the month.
Esfahan Steel Company came next with 216,840 tons of semis output during the first fiscal month.
South Kaveh Steel Company with 148,080 tons, Chadormalu Steel Company with 105,435 tons and Khorasan Steel Company with 105,300 tons were other main producers of semi-finished products during the month under review.
The heavyweight Iranian steel mills under the IMIDRO study collectively produced 22.54 million tons of semi-finished products in the last fiscal year, recording an 8% growth year-on-year.
In terms of production of finished products, MSC was followed by ESCO with more than 201,000 tons.
Other key producers of finished products were Khorasan Steel Company, Bonab Sheet Company, Ahvaz Rolling and Pipe Manufacturing Company, Azarbaijan Steel Company, Sirjan Steel Company and INSIG.
A total of 14.58 million tons of finished steel products, including hot- and cold-rolled coils, rebar, beams, pipes, wide and galvanized sheets, were produced by the heavyweight producers during the previous fiscal year, up 3% YOY.
A total of 831,000 tons of finished and semi-finished steel products were exported from Iran during the said period, considerably higher than the previous year’s similar period.
Semi-finished steel made up 566,000 tons of the total export volume, up 35% YOY.
Billet and bloom had the lion’s share of semis exports with an aggregate of 535,000 tons, 215% higher than the previous corresponding period's 84,000 tons. Slab followed with 31,000 tons, down 56% YOY. Iranian steelmakers exported more than 71,000 tons of slab during the same period of the previous year.
Exports of finished steel products also jumped by 215% to 265,000 tons during the month.
Rebar accounted for the largest portion of finished steel products exported from Iran during the period, with 204,000 tons. The total volume of Iran’s rebar exports experienced a 204% growth compared with the same period of last year.
Hot-rolled coil came next with 21,000 tons, registering a 250% growth compared with the year before.
Beams exports amounted to 16,000 tons during the period under review, up 700% YOY. Nearly 18,000 tons of L-beam, T-beam and other types were also exported from Iran during the period, recording a 500% rise YOY.
Coated coil with 6,000 tons, up 100% YOY, was the other finished steel product exported from Iran.
Exports of direct-reduced iron increased by 250% YOY to 70,000 tons, ISPA figures show.
Imports of finished and semi-finished steel products marked lower growth during the period. The ISPA report shows steel imports stood at 53,000 tons, up 10% YOY.
Iran did not import semi-finished steel products during the month.
Imports of finished steel jumped by 10% YOY to 53,000 tons. The imports mostly included HRC with 16,000 tons, up 7%; CRC with 17,000 tons, up 6%; coated coil with 14,000, down 7%; L-beam, T-beam and other types with 3,000 tons, up 200%; and rebar with 3,000 tons, up 200%.
