Countries that previously imposed a ban on scrap exports continue to maintain their restrictions

The Kyrgyz government has decided to extend the temporary ban on the export of ferrous metal waste and scrap, as well as ferrous metal ingots for remelting, for a further six months. This was reported by SteelRadar.

In accordance with Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 564 of 20 August 2026, the restrictions apply to products classified under EAEU Foreign Economic Activity Tariff (TN ZED) code 7204.

This document repeals the previous Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 117 of 18 February 2026. Consequently, the existing restrictions on the export of scrap metal and ingots for remelting are extended for a further six-month period.

The resolution will come into force 10 days after its official publication, and the actual export ban will take effect three days after the resolution comes into force.

With effect from 1 May, Kazakhstan has extended the ban on the export of ferrous and non-ferrous metal waste and scrap for a period of six months. The ban applies to the export of raw materials by all modes of transport.

It should be noted that global scrap consumption increased by 4.5% compared with the previous year, reaching 480 million tonnes, despite an overall 2.5% decline in global steel production. China retained its status as the world’s largest consumer of this raw material, increasing its figures by 8.3% – to 227 million tonnes.

The European Union retained its status as the world’s leading exporter of scrap metal in 2025, despite a 2% year-on-year decline in total shipments to 16.7 million tonnes. The main destinations for European exports were Turkey, with a slight decline of 0.9% – to 10.8 million tonnes, and Egypt, with an increase of 13.4% – to 1.9 million tonnes.