Steel production decreased in Ukraine in the first 5 months

Crude steel production in Ukraine decreased by 7 percent in the first five months compared to the same period last year to 11.38 million tonnes, according to data published by the Ukrainian Association of Producers Metallurgprom.

During this period, the output of pig iron in the country was set at 12.01 tons, decreasing by 1 percent. Rolled steel output stood at 11.38 million tonnes, up 7 percent from the same period last year, while steel pipe production remained at 614,000 tonnes.

The position of the industry is exacerbated by the addition to global factors such as declining demand for steel and an oversupply of metallurgical capacity, as well as political instability that led to a secret trade war with Russia. As a result, the share of Ukrainian metal exports on the Russian market this year fell to 8.7 percent.

The Russian market has traditionally been one of the main markets for the export of Ukrainian goods. The current situation has seriously affected the volume of Ukrainian exports. As a result, supplies of Ukrainian metal to the Russian Federation in the first 5 months of this year decreased by more than 6 percent.

If the rate of decline persists throughout 2014, Ukrainian metallurgists will miss almost a billion dollars. It is possible, of course, to pin hopes on the EU and Middle East markets to compensate for the decline in the market share of the CIS countries, but this is hardly possible in the near future, since Ukrainian enterprises are not competitive enough for this.