Steel Industry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Steel Industry - Essay Example Arcelor was also the top steel producer in 2003 and 2004 in terms of output in metric tons (International Iron and Steel Institute [IISI]). POSCO, based in Korea, is a manufacturer and distributor of steel rolled products and plates in the domestic and overseas markets. In 2004, the company produced more than 30.2 million tons of crude steel. Its products include hot rolled and cold rolled products, plates, wire rods, silicon steel sheets and stainless steel products. Other products include lower value-added semi-finished products such as pig iron, billets, blooms and slabs. The company enjoyed a market share of around 50% of the total steel products sales in Korea in 2004, with 74.2% of its total sales generated primarily from the Korean market. The company's major export market is Asia, primarily the Chinese and Japanese markets. Other important markets are North America and Europe (POSCO Annual Report). POSCO is the fifth top producer in terms of output from 2003 to 2004 (IISI). Mittal Steel Company N.V., formerly known as Ispat International N.V., produces finished and semi-finished carbon steel products including hot-rolled sheets, cold-rolled sheets, plates, electro-galvanized and coated steel, bars, wire-rods, wire-products, pipes, billets, blooms, slabs, tinplate, structural sections and rails. The company produces steel according to various specifications such as many difficult and technically sophisticated products for use in several high-end applications. Mittal Steel supplied industries in more than 90 countries in 2004, concentrating mainly in North American and European markets. In 2004, it was one of the largest manufacturers of direct reduced iron, with total production of 9.7 million tons. Mittal Steel takes advantage of its strategic shipping location in London, which is a key hub of the global shipping business (Mittal Steel Annual Report). Mittal Steel was the second top steel producer in 2003 and 2004 (IISI). Source: International Iron and Steel Institute However, Mittal, which consolidated Ispat International, Ispat Inland, LNM Holdings and International Steel Group in late 2004 and early 2005, is bound to become the largest steel producer in the world. Steel producers continuously face difficult challenges. For instance, steel companies are highly dependent on demands of such industries as the automotive, beverage and housing that when these industries suffer, they follow suit ("Steel and Iron Industry Profile"). Steel companies exporting their products to North America also have to tackle various issues. In the United States, companies such as POSCO of South Korea and Nippon Steel of Japan, has to contend with complaints from US steel makers demanding an end to illegal dumping by offshore steel manufacturers ("Steel and Iron Industry Profile"). United States Steel Corporation, based in Pittsburgh, PA, is the second largest integrated steelmaker in the United States, and the seventh top steel producer in the world, producing sheet and semi-finished steel, tubular and plate steel and tin products. The company primarily markets its products to the automotive, construction,