Steel slowdown: Chronology of production cuts

With the US under recession, China cutting back on demand, and cost of commodities going up, the global steel industry is staring at a slowdown. Rising cost of production have already forced a number of large steel makers like Arcelor Mittal and Baosteel Group to announce production cuts. CNBC-TV18's Raja Rajeshwari draws up a chronology of production cuts announced by the steel makers from September till date.

September 17: The world's largest steel maker, ArcelorMittal, said it plans to cut production as by much as 15 per cent to support prices.

October 2: Ukrainian steel maker Azovstal reduced liquid steel output by 19.3 per cent in September on a sharp fall in demand and low prices. It reported that raw steel output fell to 4,79,300 tonne in September from 498,600 in August.

October 7: Magnitogorsk, Russia's third-largest steel maker cut its October schedule for rolled steel production by at least 15 per cent to 8,50,000 tonne.

October 8: Shougang Group, Hebei Iron & Steel Group, Anyang Iron & Steel and Shandong Iron & Steel, state-owned firms that produce nearly one fifth of China's steel, agreed to cut output by 10-20 per cent , due to a decline in steel prices.

October 10: Severstal, Russia's largest steel producer slashed its production by 25-30 per cent at plants in Russia, Italy and the U.S

October 10: Bhushan Steel Ltd. stops buying raw material for steel production and plans to cut down output inventory levels, given the current liquidity problem.

October 13: Emirates Steel Industries, the largest steel plant in UAE, halts its production in the third week of October, on account of oversupply in the market, even as the inventory in UAE stood at 2 million tonnes in excess.

October 16: India's Tata Steel said Corus unit will cut crude steel production by about 20 per cent or 1 million tonne over the next three months due to slowing demand and may prolong the cut to early 2009.

October 23: Nippon Steel, the world's second-biggest steelmaker, considers output cuts from November due to weakening demand. Steel orders fell 5.4 per cent  in August, the first year-on-year decline in 28 months.

October 27: Bhushan Steel cut production of galvanised steel by 20-30 per cent due to a slowdown in demand. Galvanised steel accounts for up to 25 per cent of the firm's sales.

October 30: Russian steel maker Evraz Group to cut production at its domestic mills by about a quarter from November due to the global financial crisis.

October 31: Welspun Gujarat Stahl Rohren trims its steel plate production target for FY09 by 43 per cent and will not produce commercial grade plates for sale due to lower prices.

November 3: World Steel Dynamics stated production in September down 3.2 per cent YoY; output in China, the largest steelmaking nation, declined 9.1 per cent. Global production will drop 5 per cent in 2009.

November 4: Baosteel Group, China's largest steel maker, to cut output in December by delaying reopening a blast furnace that was shut for maintenance, as it faces weak demand.

November 4: Arcelor Mittal doubles it production cuts; Flat carbon steel production will be cut by 35 per cent in US and 30 per cent in Europe.

November 6: JSW steel cuts production by 20 per cent.