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Steel

Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon, typically containing less than 2% carbon along with other elements such as manganese, chromium, nickel and molybdenum, and is one of the world's most important industrial materials. The addition of carbon and other alloying elements gives steel superior strength, durability and versatility compared with pure iron, making it essential for construction, manufacturing, transport and infrastructure. Steel production involves either the basic oxygen furnace method, which uses iron ore and coke, or the electric arc furnace route, which recycles scrap steel. Major steel-producing regions include China, which accounts for more than half of global output, India, Japan, the United States and the European Union. The steel industry is a significant consumer of iron ore, coking coal and energy, and its performance is closely tied to construction activity, automotive manufacturing and capital investment cycles. Steel is traded globally both as a finished product in forms such as rebar, plate, coil and structural sections, and as semi-finished products including billets and slabs. Pricing is influenced by raw material costs, energy prices, demand from key sectors and trade policies including tariffs and quotas. The industry faces ongoing challenges related to overcapacity, environmental regulation and the transition to lower-carbon production methods such as hydrogen-based steelmaking. Steel remains a bellwether for economic activity and industrial development worldwide.

Steel Updates


South Africa increases tariffs on wide range of steel products to WTO bound rate
South Africa increases tariffs on wide range of steel products to WTO bound rate
5th June 2026 By: Terence Creamer

South Africa has officially raised import protection across a wide range of upstream and downstream steel products by between 10% and 30% – rates that are in line with the World Trade Organisation... 


Iron-ore
Iron-ore posts biggest daily loss in nearly two months on China demand worries
4th June 2026 By: Reuters

Iron-ore prices slid on Thursday to record their biggest daily losses in nearly two months, weighed down by rising concerns about demand in top consumer China as steel margins shrink and steel... 


AMSA notes some progress on customs duties, trade remedies as talks with IDC continue
3rd June 2026 By: Schalk Burger

JSE-listed steel producer ArcelorMittal South Africa (AMSA) has reiterated that it, the ArcelorMittal Group and the Industrial Development Corporation of South Africa (IDC) continue to engage about... 


Putting ESG commitments into action – mining’s decarbonisation journey starts now
3rd June 2026

As global scrutiny intensifies, mining companies are faced with a seemingly insurmountable task; ensuring their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) pledges translate into measurable and... 


Women in steel to put more women in the driving seat
Women in steel to put more women in the driving seat
3rd June 2026

The development of a stronger pipeline of female leaders in South Africa's metals, engineering and manufacturing sectors is the focus of the Women of Steel – Women's Leadership Mentoring Programme,... 


Fortsecue iron-ore in rail wagons
China’s State buyer seeks scrutiny of new Fortescue iron-ore
2nd June 2026 By: Bloomberg

China’s State-backed iron-ore buyer has instructed some steel mills to ask questions about Fortescue's new low-grade product as negotiations over a long-term supply contract hit a rough patch.... 


Stainless steel pipes
Trump signs proclamation amending tariffs on steel, aluminum and copper imports
2nd June 2026 By: Reuters

US President Donald Trump on Monday signed a proclamation amending his Section 232 national security tariffs on some aluminum, steeland copper imports, the White House said. The proclamation... 


Iron-ore pile
Iron-ore heads for monthly loss as coal spike pressures margins
29th May 2026 By: Bloomberg

Iron-ore headed for a monthly loss as a short-lived rally triggered by a fatal steelmaking-coal mine accident in China’s Shanxi province faded, leaving investors focused on mill margins and... 


Steelworker at smelter
Chinese coal disaster to ripple through steel, power, chemicals
28th May 2026 By: Bloomberg

The Shanxi coal disaster is likely to hit Chinese output in the short term, raising costs for steelmakers, power plants and chemicals manufacturers. The explosion at a coking coal mine that killed... 


Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Parks Tau
Tau says Cabinet-approved industrial strategy to be backed by implementation plan
26th May 2026 By: Terence Creamer

Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Parks Tau says the themes of decarbonisation, diversification, and digitalisation will now anchor South Africa’s Industrial Development Strategy, following... 


Fortescue iron-ore mine
China's weak steel output, strong iron-ore imports show structural shift
26th May 2026 By: Reuters

The contrast between China's weak steel production but robust iron-ore imports is continuing and is starting to look like a structural shift rather than a temporary dislocation. China, which... 


Lhyfe taxi refuelling.
As costs drop, hydrogen energy sovereignty is being grasped
22nd May 2026 By: Martin Creamer

Following South Africa’s Northam Platinum reporting earlier this year that thousands of hydrogen-powered trucks are doing the rounds in China, France’s Lhyfe added on Monday, May 4 that by the end... 


South Africa increases tariffs on wide range of steel products to WTO bound rate
South Africa increases tariffs on wide range of steel products to WTO bound rate
19th May 2026 By: Terence Creamer

South Africa has officially raised import protection across a wide range of upstream and downstream steel products by between 10% and 30% – rates that are in line with the World Trade Organisation... 


Lhyfe taxi refuelling.
As costs drop, hydrogen energy sovereignty is being grasped
5th May 2026 By: Martin Creamer

Following South Africa’s Northam Platinum reporting earlier this year that thousands of hydrogen-powered trucks are doing the rounds in China, France’s Lhyfe added on Monday, May 4 that by the end... 


Canada Prime Minister Mark Carney
Canada giving $1.1bn to firms hit by US metal tariff rules
5th May 2026 By: Bloomberg

Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government unveiled measures worth C$1.5-billion, or $1.1-billion, to help Canadian firms hurt by the Trump administration’s changes to US tariffs on imports containing... 


Green hydrogen rotary kiln.
Namibian pilot unlocks hydrogen-based path to green steel using low-grade iron-ore
1st May 2026 By: Martin Creamer

A green hydrogen breakthrough in Namibia is opening the way for decarbonised steel using iron-ore of considerably lower grade. In an electrically powered hydrogen rotary kiln, 80 t of Australian... 


Jimblebar iron-ore
China's State iron-ore buyer allows purchases of previously banned BHP portside cargoes, sources say
28th April 2026 By: Reuters

China's State iron-ore buyer has lifted its ban on purchases of certain BHP ore products that had piled up at ports, four sources with knowledge of the matter said on April 28. BHP Group, the... 


An image of a factory worker measuring a metal product
Sector’s sustainability depends on modernisation
24th April 2026 By: Nadine Ramdass

While technically resilient, the South African metal fabrication sector is structurally constrained, with its future contingent on its embracing modernisation, sustainability and skills... 


Iron-ore trains in Pilbara, Australia
Iron-ore eases as investors weigh rising supply against higher war-induced costs
23rd April 2026 By: Reuters

Iron-ore prices eased on Thursday, as investors weighed prospects of a growing supply of the key steelmaking ingredient against higher costs stemming from the prolonged Iran conflict. The... 


Steel worker in factory
Canada clamps down on steel dumping
22nd April 2026 By: Creamer Media Reporter

The Canadian International Trade Tribunal (CITT) on April 21 ruled that anti-dumping tariffs will be imposed on foreign steel imports sold by Tenaris and certain exporters from South Korea, Türkiye... 


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pqt: 0.039s - ct: 0.103s - 116pq - 2rq
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