Southeast Europe (SEE) crude steel production continued to decrease in January-August, according to the latest worldsteel data monitored by Kallanish. Regional output amounted to 2.243 million tonnes, down by -22.7% year-on-year.
In January-July regional production had fallen -28.7% on-year to 2.002mt.
Serbia was again the largest steel producer among the seven countries of SEE, which also include Bulgaria, Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia, North Macedonia and Moldova.
Serbia’s production of crude steel totalled 973,000t in January-August, down by -24.1% y-o-y.
This time, the second-largest producer in the region was Slovenia, whose crude steel output fell -17.2% to 359,000t.
The third-largest steel producer Bosnia and Herzegovina saw production of 345,000t, down by -38.2% y-o-y.
Fourth-largest Bulgaria saw its crude steel output down by -25.1% to 310,000t.
The fifth-largest steel producer, Moldova, produced 182,000t, down by -27.7% y-o-y.
Although Serbia’s crude steel production decreased, construction growth provides a positive outlook for the country’s steel industry, according to long steelmaker Metalfer (see Kallanish passim). The Serbian government stepped up construction projects in the run up to the general election, which the ruling party of President Aleksandar Vucic won at the start of summer.
