Ukraine increased its production of rolled steel by 16.7% m/m in May

In May 2026, Ukraine’s steelworks increased their production of commercial rolled steel by 16.7% compared with the previous month and by 2.5% year-on-year, reaching 537,800 tonnes. This is according to data from the State Enterprise Ukrmetallurgprom.

Pig iron production for the period rose by 14.5% month-on-month to 634.4 thousand tonnes. Compared with the same period last year, the figure fell by 1.6%.

Steel output in May amounted to 629.4 thousand tonnes, which is 21.7% more than in the previous month, but 1% less year-on-year.

In the January–May period of this year, steel production fell by 6.1% compared with the same period last year to 2.87 million tonnes, pig iron by 0.6% – to 2.99 million tonnes, and rolled steel by 6.7% year-on-year – to 2.34 million tonnes.

It should be noted that in 2025, Ukraine’s steel industry increased its production of commercial rolled steel by 4.8% year-on-year, to 6.52 million tonnes. Pig iron production last year rose by 11.2% year-on-year – to 7.88 million tonnes, whilst steel production fell by 2.2% year-on-year – to 7.41 million tonnes. The sector’s performance continued to improve last year, reaching its highest levels since the start of the full-scale invasion, except for steel production.

In its December forecast, GMK Center estimated potential steel output in 2026 at 7.2 million tonnes (base case scenario), which assumes neutral dynamics compared to 2025. This is the maximum production volume under current conditions. Under a pessimistic scenario, the country faces a decline to levels close to those of 2023 – 6.3–6.6 million tonnes.