October Global Crude Steel Production Up 5.8% Year Over Year

According to World Steel Association data released late last week, global crude steel production in October jumped 5.8% compared with October 2017 production.
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Production from the 64 countries reporting data to the World Steel Association amounted to 156.6 million tons in October.
Broken down by country, China produced 82.6 million tons, up 9.1% year over year. The October production growth increased from September’s spike of 7.5%.
The Chinese steel sector hit a bear market, with prices reaching five-month lows.
We noted yesterday:

U.S. steel-buying organizations ought to watch China’s demand very carefully now, as price trends in China lead price trends in the U.S.
Lower oil prices combined with sluggish Chinese demand does not bode well for the industrial metal’s long-term bull market. The dramatic shift in oil prices and lower metal pricing coming out of China represent two significant variables tracked by MetalMiner with respect to calling a bull or bear market.
December forecast subscribers will be the first to learn whether or not MetalMiner will change its long-term outlook. A shift in outlook would also signify a switch in sourcing strategies.

The U.S. produced 7.6 million tons of crude steel in October 2018, up 10.5% compared to October 2017.
Indian production reached 8.8 million tons, up 0.4% from October 2017. Japan produced 8.6 million tons, marking a 4.5% decline compared to October 2017. South Korea saw a 3.5% year-over-year increase, up to 6.2 million tons in October.
Meanwhile, in Europe, France produced 1.3 million tons, a decrease of 3.5% compared to October 2017. Italy’s produced 2.3 million, up 1.1% year over year. Spain produced 1.3 million tons, marking a decrease of 7.4%.
Turkey’s production hit 3.2 million tons, down 4.3% year over year.
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Ukraine produced 1.8 million tons, down 6.7% year over year.