On Tuesday, March 24, at the Istanbul Marriott Hotel Asia, during the second session of EUROMETAL Steel Day and the YISAD conference on sheet steel, organized in collaboration with SteelOrbis, Murat Erylmaz, CEO of SteelOrbis, made a presentation entitled "Overview of the Turkish Steel Industry" and shared key ideas on global and local markets.
Mr. Eryilmaz noted that global steel production in 2021 exceeded 1.9 billion tons, although there has been a slight decrease over the past two years. Referring to China's production policy, he said that despite production reduction targets announced at the beginning of last year, production increased during the year, but eventually totaled 960 million tons, reflecting a decrease of about 45 million tons by the end of the year. He added that, in his opinion, this decrease was more the result of weak domestic demand than a planned measure, adding that China began 2026 with a more aggressive production reduction, resulting in production of 75.3 million tons in January, which is 14% less than the same period last year. He stressed that the decline in Chinese production also affected global production: in January, there was a 6.5% year-on-year decline worldwide.
Signs of weakening production and capacity utilization in Turkey
Assessing the situation in Turkey, Mr. Erilmaz noted that liquid steel production reached its peak in 2021, there was a significant decrease in the period 2022-23, and then in 2024 and 2025, with the introduction of new capacities, it resumed its growth trend, exceeding 38 million tons. However, noting the weak start to 2026, he said that production in January was 3.39 million tons; although this is 5.8% more year-on-year, it has decreased compared to previous months. Export difficulties caused by the introduction of CBAM and weak domestic demand were cited as the main reasons for this decline.
Mr. Erylmaz noted that the upward trend in production in electric arc and blast furnaces, which was observed in the second half of 2025, was replaced by a decrease at the beginning of this year, adding that the downward trend in production arose due to declining exports and weak production figures to the domestic market. Looking at the capacity utilization figures, he noted that in January, the production rate of flat rolled products exceeded 80 percent, but in February it is expected to decrease to about 75 percent due to weak exports. He added that the situation with long-range rentals is even worse, as the capacity utilization rate drops below 60 percent.
Price pressure is rising, while demand is
