TEHRAN Production of steel ingot in Iran rose 7.4 percent during the first two months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21-My 21), as compared to the same period of time in the past year, Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization (IMIDRO) announced.As reported, 6.319 million tons of steel ingots was produced in the two-month period of this year, while the figure was 5.885 million tons in the first two months of the previous year.As previously announced by the Iranian Steel Producers Association (ISPA), the country exported 7.372 million tons of steel ingots in the past Iranian calendar year 1401 (ended on March 20).The countrys steel ingot export fell four percent in 1401, as compared to 1400 when the figure was 7.678 million tons.The World Steel Association (WSA), in its latest annual report, announced that the production of crude steel in Iran rose 8.8 percent in May 2023, from May 2022.The report said that Iran produced 3.3 million tons of crude steel in May of this year.The WSA has previously announced thatIran is ranked eighth among the worlds top steel-producing countries in April, rising one place in the list of the worlds top steel-makers.The report released by the WSA shows that Irans crude steel output has increased 5.9 percent in the mentioned month while the global average growth rate stood at 2.4 percent.Based on the WSA data, Iran produced 3.1 million tons of crude steel in the mentioned month.Meanwhile, the Islamic Republic produced 9.7 million tons of steel in the first four months of 2023, registering a 0.1 percent growth compared to the same period in the previous year.WSA report says that the worlds 64 steel producers managed to produce 161.4 million tons of the commodity in April, 2.4 percent less than the figure for the previous years same period.The steelmakers produced 622.7 million tons of steel in the first four months of this year, which indicates a 13 percent drop compared to the same period last year.According to the WSA report, China, India, Japan, the United States , and Russia were the worlds top steel producers respectively.Iran has maintained its place as the worlds 10th biggest steel producer during the mentioned four months, according to the WSA data.The Iranian steel industry has been constantly developing over the past years against all the pressures and obstacles created by outside forces like the United States sanctions and the coronavirus outbreak that has severely affected the performance of the worlds top producers.Back in February, the WSA reported that Irans crude steel production increased by eight percent in 2022 when the production by the worlds top 64 steelmakers declined by 4.2 percent.Iran was ranked first among the worlds top steel producers in terms of production growth in the previous year.Based on the WSA data, Iran produced 30.6 million tons of crude steel in the mentioned year.Meanwhile, WSA stated that crude steel production by the worlds top 64 producers fell 4.2 percent to stand at 1.787 billion in 2022.Production by Europes major steel producers also declined significantly last year so that Germanys production declined by 8.4 percent, Italy experienced negative growth of 11.6 percent, Frances output declined by 13.1 percent, Spain registered a negative 19.2 percent growth and the UK a 15.6 percent decline in steel production.According to the World Steel Association, Iran was the worlds 10th top steel producer over the past two years, after countries like China, India, Japan, and Russia.The country is expected to climb to seventh place among the worlds top steel producers by the Iranian calendar year 1404 (March 2025).MA