MEPS: A new record for steel production will be set

Despite the existing global surplus in steel production, MEPS International predicts continued growth in output in the coming years. In 2020, global steel production is expected to reach 1.685 billion tonnes, breaking the previous record recorded in 2014 when production reached 1.662 billion tonnes.

MEPS analysts believe production will increase 0.3 percent this year to 1.62 billion tonnes. At the beginning of this year, manufacturers limited their output. The rise in prices in the second quarter halted the process, although there was no improvement in demand. In the second half of the year, steel production began to grow. At least globally, as the European Union and the US are reducing but offsetting growth in China and India.

According to MEPS, China's steel production in the country is expected to reach 806 million tonnes. That's an increase of 1 percent year over year. Production in India is set to rise to 95.2 million tonnes this year, an increase of 6.3 percent. Next year, MEPS predicts production at the same level as this year, and an increase of two percent in 2018. Over the next four years, the average annual growth rate is estimated at 1 percent.