The steel industry is one the biggest industries in the world and the top 10 export countries include China, Japan, India, the United States, Russia, South Korea, Germany, Turkey, Brazil, and Ukraine. Technological leaps, rising income levels, geopolitical and political-economic dynamics have played a role in increasing demand, forcing countries to increase production, which in some cases has created overproduction. But surplus production or exports are a worrying trend in the global economy. Overproduction of steel means excess exports at extremely low prices, resulting in a sharp decline in foreign demand for steel production and an increase in jobs abroad. 
China's overproduction of crude steel worries several countries, including the US, EU and India, as they claim to control the level of market demand. The United States and other major economies negotiate with China about its profits and very cheap exports. Public protests over the need to keep factories running and record GDP are forcing China to produce more crude steel than the rest of the world, according to journalists, economists, and market analysts. So this helps speed things up. But some countries claim that China is using "western markets as export waste," leading to a stream of overseas exports and a decline in U.S. steel production. China exported 106.6 million tons of steel, and since 2009 we have seen an unimaginable increase of 364%. South Korea, Vietnam, and the Philippines are the largest buyers of Chinese steel. Most of China's steel production companies are state-owned and semi-state-owned. HBIS and BaoSteel are China's largest metal producers, targeting the global steel market and their partners. 
top 10 steel exporting countries
Japan is among the top 10 steel exporting countries. Japan ranks 2 in the top ten so the potentials in the country are very high. Despite fluctuating figures, Japan's steel production has remained above 104 million tons after a fall of 110.6 million tons in 2014. The reason for this sudden fall is a sharp rise in VAT. However, according to experts, stimulus measures can help the country recover. Japan is the second-largest exporter of advanced and high-quality steel with global sales of 40.4 million tons. It was able to increase export growth by 22% despite lower production. South Korea, Thailand, and China are major buyers of Japanese steel, while Japan, Sumitomo, and JFE are Japan's largest steel producers. India is ready to overtake Japan as the world's second-largest producer of crude steel, according to leading economists in major markets. 
The world's fourth-largest economy produced 101 million tons of steel in February 2017, an increase of 11%, after reaching 95 million tons by the end of 2016. India is the 14th largest exporter of crude steel and supplies 10 million tons of steel to global buyers. According to various estimates, India has performed well, with exports increasing by 75%. In other estimates, the figures reached 101% and 142%. However, imports fell by almost 25%. The largest buyers of Indian steel are Nepal, Belgium, and Bangladesh. Tata Steel Group, Steel India Limited (SAIL), and JSW Steel Limited are the largest steel producers in India. In addition, these companies are known as the world's largest steel producers of export quality. South Korea is the sixth-largest steel producer in the world and produced more than 68 million tons of steel in 2016. Although production trends were accompanied by a brief dive in early 2017, experts argue that the numbers will only get better. 
steel export by country
The export of every country is very different and basically depends on the situation inside the country. Steel exportation is one of the most important works in the economy of a country and differs country by country. Japan is one of the good examples in here. Japan actually exports steel to more than 130 countries around the world. Among the top 10 countries, each country requires an average of 1 million tons of Japanese steel products to be imported, and about 82% of Japan's total steel exports are related to these countries. Meanwhile, South Korea, China, and Thailand are Japan's largest steel importers. Taiwan, Vietnam, India, and Indonesia on the Asian continent and the United States and Mexico on the American continent are major importers of Japanese steel and steel. 
From 2010 to 2017, Japan's steel exports stabilized at an average of 40 million tons. Exports in 2017 were 37.4 million tons, a decrease of 7.4% from 40.4 million tons in 2016. Japan's steel exports fell 3% to 18.3 million tons at the end of the first half of 2018, corresponding to 18.9 million tons a year earlier. The value of Japan's steel exports fell between 2011 and 2016, driven by lower global steel prices. Japan's exports of seamless and welded steel pipes increased in the first nine months of 2018 by 8% and 13% respectively compared to the same period last year. In addition, another achievement of Japan in the field of exports in 2018 was the increase in exports of wide steel plates. Although exports of products such as galvanized sheets, other coated sheets, and all long products fell by 1-5%, it still did not cost Japan its share of the export market. 
top 10 steel importing countries
The top 10 steel importing countries are as followed. Compared to the same period in 2020, production increased in the world's top 10 steel-producing countries, but the smallest increase was in the United States and the largest in India. India's steel production increased 23.9% from March last year; China came in second with an increase of 19.1%, followed by Iran with an increase of 10.7%. And in February 2021, although steel production in most countries declined, Iran not only did not decline but also had the highest increase in steel production among the top 10 producers. This is followed by Germany (10.4%), Russia (9.4%), Turkey (9.2%), South Korea (4.7%), Japan (4.6%), Brazil (4.1%), and the USA (1%). Things do not seem to be getting any better for U.S. Steel after a sharp decline in crude steel production from 88.2 million tons to 78.6 million tons in 2016. 
Market researchers claim that a stream of cheap and economical imports from major developing economies has forced domestic steelmakers in Western markets to close and shut down jobs, reducing production. The United States, which is also the largest steel importer, is in talks with major manufacturers in developing economies to curb excessive exports. For it can be catastrophic in global markets. However, economists predict that the current steel production situation will return to normal. Yet the United States exports high-purity steel to nearly 150 countries, with Canada and Mexico being the largest buyers, and Nucor, U.S. Steel, and ArcelorMittal are the largest US steel producers. The ninth-largest steel exporter has sold almost 9 million tons of steel to 150 countries. 
steel production by country
steel production is different country by country, for example, Germany is known for its high-yield steel production and has maintained its position as the world's seventh-largest crude steel producer. In 2016, national steel production was 42.1 million tons, a slight decrease compared to 2015. Germany is currently the fifth largest exporter of crude steel in the world. France, Poland, and the Netherlands are consumers of German steel. German-made steel is very popular in the car and weapons sector. ThyssenKrupp, ArcelorMittal and Salzgitter are Germany's largest steel producers. According to experts, Germany will produce more than many other countries in the coming years. 
In Ukraine, located in Eastern Europe, crude steel production fell from eighth place in 2010 to tenth place in 2016. A major military conflict has put a dent in the country's metal production, which currently stands at 24.2 million tons. Because the civil conflict is mainly in the eastern region where the steelworks are located. Ukraine has exported 18.2 million tons of steel since 2017, and its total exports fell by 30% during the political crisis. Metinvest, ISD, Corporation, JSC and Zaporizhstal are the largest steelmakers in Ukraine. Egypt, Turkey, and Italy are the largest consumers of Ukrainian steel production. Experts are hopeful as the country's crude steel production has increased by almost 2 million tons. Ukraine remains one of the ten largest producers and exporters of crude steel in the world. 
largest exporter of steel in the world
China as the biggest steel exporter and importer in the world produces and imports more than any other country in the world. The steelmaking capacity of Chinese steel is about 10 times greater than in the United States. The country has been accused of supplying cheap steel to world markets to outcompete its rivals, and the Trump administration is the initiator of the pushback that imposes high tariffs to increase profitability for U.S. steel producers. In 2017, China reduced steel production by about 50 million tons due to domestic trade and economic reasons to reduce excess capacity in the steel industry. The country has been the world's largest steel exporter for the past five years and since 2015 has accounted for around 24% of global steel exports. In 2015, China's economic growth slowed, and demand for ferrous metals such as steel and iron ore fell sharply. 
Dumping policies, subsidies, and margins imposed by the Chinese government have affected the share prices of many global steel companies, and metal giants such as Anglo American and Rio Tinto have been hit hard. China, Japan, India, the United States, and Russia were the five largest steelmakers in 2016 and beyond, with China leading the race. In 2017, China's crude steel production was 831 million tons, Japan's 104.7 tons, the United States' 116 tons, India's 101.4 tons, and Russia 71.3 tons. While China and Japan are the world's largest steel exporters, the United States and Germany are major importers due to the high consumption rates of their economies. China is the world's largest steel producer and the largest consumer of steel. Given such a large market share, combined with the large use of steel in various sectors of the Chinese economy, any slowdown in China's economic growth will have a significant impact on the global steel industry. 
top steel importing countries
There is a word that says India is going to be the top steel importing and exporting country in the world. The world is working on fiscal stimulus packages for infrastructure development, which will ultimately generate a huge demand for steel in the coming years. Sharma explained that India should not see ASEAN countries as competitors. China, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Thailand do not export anything. While there may be exceptions, India can supply the steel that these countries need. These countries have domestic demand, and we will not see their exports in the future. JSPL is considering expanding the capacity of the Odisha steelworks and launching a new project in Andhra Pradesh. We are entering the hot rolling industry with a steelmaking and rolling capacity of 3 million tons per year at the unit in Odisha, the official said. This capacity development will be part of both greenfields (greenfield) and developed (brownfield) projects. Sharma explained that the company is investing Rs 21,000 crore, equivalent to $ 2.82 billion and that the project is likely to start production in March 2023. The Andhra Pradesh project is established in the port city of Krishnappa. 
The company is very willing to install the above units near the port to facilitate the import of raw materials and minerals. The project produces 3 million tons of steel annually and is expected to be put into operation in the financial year 2026. Under the PLI (Special Steel Production Linked Incentive) scheme, JSPL Steelworks produces special steel to service Indian railways. JSPL congratulates the Indian Government on their initiative to reduce the import of special steel by introducing the PLI scheme. Though the countries we talked about are the top countries working in the line of exporting steel and steel products in the world and if China and India work as the top exporters in the world there is always a place for other companies and countries in the market to grow.