Iran steel products output hits 14 million tons

Baku, Azerbaijan, March 10 By Rahim Zamanov - Trend: Iranian steel firms produced 14 million tons of steel products in the first ten months of the current Iranian calendar year, which started on March 21, Seyyed Rasoul Khalife Soltani, an official with Iran Steel Producers Union said, IRNA reported on March 10. The companies also produced 13 million tons of steel ingots which is 9 per cent more than the same period of the previous year. Iran imported 2.2 million tons of steel products in the ten-month period. The figure shows 28 per cent decrease compared to the same period of the previous year. The country's steel products' exports stood at 1.5 million tons in the mentioned period, indicating a 31 per cent increase over last year. Iran's crude steel production reached 14.89 million tons in the previous Iranian calendar year, which ended on March 20. Iran plans to increase its annual steel output to 55 million tons by the end of the Fifth Five-Year Development Plan (2015). Follow us on Twitter @TRENDNewsAgency