Global steel production rose to 24.2 pc to 107.5 MT

Global crude steel production jumped year-on-year in November, posting a positive growth rate for a third month in a row as steelmakers continued to bring back idled capacity on improved orders.

Production rose by 24.2 percent to 107.5 million tonnes, but was down from October's 113.4 million tonnes, figures from the World Steel Association, whose members represent 85 percent of the world's total output showed on Monday.

Output in China, the world's top producer and consumer of the metal, jumped 37.4 percent year-on-year in November to 47.3 million tonnes, bringing the eleven-month output to 462.4 million tonnes, 12.1 percent higher than last year.

The global steel industry is slowly recovering from one of the worst recessions in its history. Steel prices have risen from lows as the production crept up, but analysts believe the recovery remains fragile.

In January to November, output was down by 10.8 percent to 1.09 billion tonnes because of the sharp production cuts at the beginning of this year as global recession hit steel demand.

The capacity utilisation ratio in November was at 75 percent, slightly down from 76.9 percent in October.

At the peak of the downturn, capacity usage rates had fallen below 60 percent in the United States, and just above 60 percent in Europe, from above 90 percent during boom times.

Output in the European Union was up 10.8 percent at 14.2 million tonnes, while in the United States, production was at 5.96 million tonnes, posting a rise of nearly 27 percent year-on-year.

Production in the Middle East, where demand was buoyant last year due to booming infrastructure spending, edged up by 3.1 percent to 1.3 million tonnes in November.