Middle East to see positive steel growth

Steel production in the Middle East increased by about 7% in August compared to July, according to statistics released by the World Steel Association. The Middle East is the only region, which has registered a positive growth of 2.2% during the first eight months of 2009 compared to the same period last year. The region produced about 11.069 million metric tonnes (mmt) of steel between January and August 2009 compared to 10.828 mmt during the first eight months of 2008. Saudi Arabia alone produced 31.98% more steel in August after it increased production from 347 metric tonnes in July to 458 metric tonnes in August. However, production levels in Iran went down by 2.29 percent from 870 metric tonnes in July to 850 metric tonnes in August. Qatar's production remained the same at 85 metric tonnes. The UAE, which does not release its production figures to the World Steel Association, also witnessed an increase in production during the past few months.Women Jordan Shoes