7/18/2016 - European Steel Association - Eurofer
EU steel sector still paying the price for sustained global overcapacity
stahl und eisen -
EU apparent steel consumption grew 3.1 % year-on-year in the first quarter of 2016. Improving business activity at the end-user level and inventory replenishment in the downstream steel supply chain fuelled steel demand. Improving international steel pricing conditions since mid-February and lengthening lead times also explain the increase in buying interest and related stockpiling over the quarter.
Eurofer Director General Axel Eggert said, “Imports rose by 24 % year-on-year in the first quarter of 2016, but EU domestic deliveries fell by 1 %. This shows that once again third country suppliers gained most from the modest growth in demand and continued to capture a larger portion of the EU steel market. While deliveries from China into the EU remain at an elevated level, suppliers from other third countries such as Japan, South Korea, Iran, Belarus, Russia and Ukraine are increasingly targeting the still relatively open EU market”.
Source: Eurofer, Brussels, Belgium