Baku, Azerbaijan, August 17
By Ali Mohammadi - Trend:
The head of Tehran Iron and Steel Union said 40 to 45 percent of Iran’s steel and metals are being exported to neighboring nations.
“Due to their high quality and standard, Iranian steel products still have their own customers in the region,” Mohammad Azad told IRIB news agency on August 17.
Describing crude steel as a strategic commodity that could be a rival to oil, he added that 40 to 45 percent of the steel (products) are going to the markets in neighboring countries.
Azad noted that the new US sanctions have failed to affect the country’s export of steel to other countries.
Iranian steelmakers exported 6.55 million tons of steel during the first 10 months of the current fiscal year (March 21, 2017-Jan. 20), posting a 48 percent year-on-year growth, according to the Iranian Steel Producers Association.
Semi-finished steel exports made up 5.36 million tons of the total figure, growing 89 percent year on year.
Billet and bloom had the lion’s share of exports, standing at 2.95 million tons to mark a 65 percent growth, year on year. Slab shipments followed with 2.41 million tons, surging by 130 percent year on year.
Exports of finished steel products during the 10-month period shrank by 25 percent year on year, to 1.18 million tons.