b'28American Journal ofTransportation ajot.com(CLOUDScontinued from page 26) Crude Steel Production by Regionhave not helped improve the global steel demand picture.Mar 2022 (Mt) % change Mar 22/21 Jan-Mar 2022 (Mt) % change Jan-Mar 22/21The mining industry had been one of the biggest winners from the post-lockdownAfrica 1.2 -17.1 3.8 -2.9economic recovery and the supply disruptions resulting from Russias invasion ofAsia and Oceania 118.6 -5.0 331.3 -7.8Ukraine. Many metals and minerals hit record prices in the last year, boosting compa-nies revenues and profit. But its not clear that the situation will persist. EU (27) 12.8 -8.5 36.8 -3.8RioTinto,theAustralia-basedminingcompany,oneoftheworldslargest,Europe, Other 4.2 -3.5 11.9 -5.3reported that iron ore shipments declined 10% in the first quarter, including an 8%Middle East 3.5 -3.5 10.2 -1.9decrease from its mines in Australias Pilbara region from the same period a yearNorth America 9.7 -2.8 28.1 -0.9ago, and a 15% drop in Pilbara from the fourth quarter of 2021. The company warnedRussia & other7.4 -19.2 24.0 -8.5CIS + Ukrainethat rising inflation caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and a resurgence ofSouth America 3.7 1.7 10.6 -3.6COVID cases would likely suppress market expectations.Total 64 countries 161.0 -5.8 456.6 -6.8Rio Tinto also produces copper, diamonds, aluminum, and other ores and metalsThe 64 countries included in this table accounted for approximately 98% of total world crude steel production in 2020. from sites around the world. The company recently reported decreases in the pro- Source: World Steel Associationduction of copper, aluminum, and titanium oxide slag. These conditions were notTop 10 Steel-Producing Countriesconfined to Rio Tinto alone. Its competitors the Australian BHP Group and AngloMar 2022 (Mt) % change Mar 22/21 Jan-Mar 2022 (Mt) % change Jan-Mar 22/21American Plc, based in London, also recently reported lower iron ore productionChina 88.3 -6.4 243.4 -10.5numbers and higher costs. India 10.9 4.4 31.9 5.9Recent input cost increases are the largest raw-material cost hike since the oil crisis in 1973, said Jakob Stausholm, Rio Tintos chief executive. Rising inter- Japan 8.0 -4.3 23.0 -2.9est rates globally pose downside risks to economic growth. Further downside risksUnited States 7.0 -1.7 20.3 -0.4includeaprolongedwarandothergeopoliticaltensions,andextendedlaborandRussia 6.6 e -1.8 18.7 -1.2supply shortages. South Korea 5.7 -6.1 16.9 -3.8U.S. Steel is directly exposed to the consequences of the Russian invasion of UkraineGermany 3.3 -11.8 9.8 -3.7through its integrated mill in Koice, Slovakia, a facility which supplies customers inTurkey 3.3 -2.9 9.4 -4.7that country as well as in the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, and Western Europe.Brazil 3.0 e 5.4 8.5 -2.2Before the war, Koice was dependent on Russian iron ore transiting Ukraine via rail.Iran 2.3 e -6.1 6.9 -4.4Needless to say, the supply picture has changed since the Russian invasion in February. eestimated. Ranking of top 10 producing countries is based on year-to-date aggregates ourCinG Ar esPonse Source: World Steel AssociationAsoflateApril,some Russian ore was still trickling into Slovakia, but Dave Bur-ritt, U.S. Steels president and chief executive officer, noted, theres not so much coming from Russia anymore. Rus-siancoal,anotherkeyraw material for steel production, has stopped altogether.U.S. Steels procurement team built up a 78-day inven-tory of iron ore at the Koice plantinresponsetoantici-pated supply disruptions. The companywasbeginningto consider working off some of that inventory in late April.Thecompanysprocure-mentteamsinSlovakiaand the United States also worked to mitigate the impact on the raw-material supply chain by drawing on other sources of supply.Weareleveraging newandexistingrelation-shipstosecureasupplyof iron ore, coal, and other raw materialswhilecontinuing toprofitablymeetcustomer demand,saidBurritt.The teams in Slovakia are procur-ing raw materials from alter-natesources,includingthe seabornemarket,andlimit-ing our exposure to the con-flict area while continuing to run this facility.U.S. Steel logisticians have alsodevelopedalternative transportationroutes,said Burritt,andestablishednew sitestooffloadrawmateri-als.Despitethecontinuing conflict in Ukraine, our opera-tions are running at high levels of utilization, he added.The performance of U.S. SteelsoperationsinSlo-vakiaduringthefirstquar-terof2022representedthe third-bestquarterinitshis-tory, according to Burritt, and havedemonstratedconsis-tent earnings. The plant, and the company as a whole, he added,haveseentherise in raw material costs but its (CLOUDScontinued on page 31)'