Assessing the Depth and Position of Iran's Participation in the Global Value Chain of the Steel Industry

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors
Farzad Karimi 1
Hassan Ghorbani Dinani 2
Hamidreza Arfa Alrafiei 3
1 Associate Professor of International Economics, Department of Management, Mo.C., Islamic Azad University, Isfahan, Iran .
2 Assistant Professor of Management, Department of Management, Mo.C., Islamic Azad University, Isfahan, Iran.
3 PhD Student in Management, Department of Management, Mo.C., Islamic Azad University, Isfahan, Iran.
10.30497/smt.2026.250184.3717
Abstract
The majority of domestic studies on Iran’s steel industry have focused on production trends, nominal capacity, overall trade balance, or the effects of sanctions, with little attention given to stage‑wise analysis of the value chain or the nature of the country’s integration therein. Furthermore, a coherent analytical framework that combines the Revealed Comparative Advantage index at the level of disaggregated trade codes with indicators of participation in global value chains—based on value‑added data—is rarely observed. This identified gap underscores the necessity for a structural and multidimensional study in this domain. To analyze the type of integration, forward participation, backward participation, and position in the chain were applied. Findings show Iran is located in a "midstream and resource-based" position, rooted in access to mineral resources and energy. Also, in downstream loops and complex final products, Iran faces structural weakness in intensity and diversity of relative advantage. The results of participation indices indicate that although the Iranian steel industry is integrated into the global chain, the nature of this integration is mainly based on the export of intermediate and semi-finished products.
Keywords
Steel Industry
Global Value Chain
Relative Comparative Advantage
Forward Participation
Backward Participation
Iran
Subjects
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  • Receive Date 29 April 2026
  • Revise Date 16 May 2026
  • Accept Date 16 May 2026