Raw-steel production for the 65 countries that report to the World Steel Association (WSA) was 138 million tonnes in March — a 2.7% decline compared to March last year — while the first-quarter total of around 400 million tonnes was down 1.8% from last year.

The WSA forecasts that steel consumption will increase by only 0.5% this year, due to to a decline in demand in China, falling oil prices and “uneven industrial recovery” in the EU.

China was the leading producer of raw steel in March, with 69.5 million tonnes — 12.2% more than the February total but 1.2% less than the March 2014 figure. Chinese steel makers produced 200.1 million tonnes during the first three months of this year, 1.7% less than last year.

The CIS region (Russia and its satellites) produced 24.8 million tonnes of raw steel during the first quarter of 2015, 5.9% less than last year.

Meanwhile, Japanese steel makers produced 9.3 million tonnes during March, up 10% from February but down 4.5% from March last year. In the first quarter, they produced 26.7 million tonnes of raw steel, 3% less than last year. First-quarter raw-steel production in the European Union was 43.7 million tonnes, down 0.6% from last year.