Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 23, 2026
2 min readLast updated: March 23, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleMMK, Russia’s top domestic steel supplier, will cut 10% of its management staff and pause most investments as operations run at just 60% capacity amid sharply weakened domestic demand and sanctions pressure. The company expects no rebound in steel demand until 2027.
MOSCOW, March 23 (Reuters) - MMK, one of Russia's biggest steelmakers, plans to cut 10% of its management personnel and pause new investment as it is operating at 60% capacity due to weak domestic demand, the company said on Monday.
Demand for metals from Russia's construction, energy, automotive and machinery manufacturing sectors, the major customers, is shrinking as companies pause investment due to high interest rates as the central bank fights inflation. The metals industry was also hit by Western sanctions.
"The metals industry is the most sensitive 'barometer' of the economic situation, and today the state of the industry is quite challenging," MMK's CEO Pavel Shilyaev said in a statement.
"We are forced to make a decision to reduce the number of staff considering the current capacity utilization of production facilities," said Shilyaev. He added that the company has stopped investment apart from efficiency and environmental projects.
MMK, based in the Urals region, is the biggest supplier of steel to Russia's domestic market and is ranked among the four biggest producers in Russia. The company, which employs over 56,000 people, declined to say how many jobs will be cut.
Russia's economic growth slowed to 1% last year, compared to 4.3% in 2021, and is expected to remain at the same level this year. Some sectors, including the metals and coal industries, experienced difficulties and asked the government for support. Shilyaev said he does not expect demand for steel to rebound until 2027.
(Reporting by Gleb Bryanski; Editing by Susan Fenton)
MMK is cutting 10% of its management personnel due to weak domestic demand and operating at only 60% capacity.
MMK has paused all new investments except for efficiency and environmental projects.
Western sanctions have contributed to reduced demand and challenges in Russia's metals industry, affecting MMK's operations.
MMK's CEO stated that demand for steel is not expected to rebound until 2027.
MMK is operating at 60% of its production capacity due to declining demand.
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