Revista InfoAcero Abril 2025
En el siguiente enlace pueden acceder a la edición de Abril de nuestra revista INFOACERO
Destacamos a continuación algunos de sus contenidos:
- Opinión – D. Gerardo García- Junta Directiva UAHE
- Índice UAHE: Evolución precios de aprovisionamiento Septiembre 2024 – Febrero 2025
- Metal: Coyuntura del Metal-Confemetal- Abril 25
- Información Asociativa: Conferencias UAHE, Asamblea General y Formación
- Resumen Steel Net Forum Iberia, Vilamoura (Portugal)
- Colaboración RRHH: “Misión Imposible” – D. Agustín Barroso– Director RRHH HIEMESA
- Colaboración ASCEM: “Paradigma actual de la estructura metálica en España 2025” – D. Victor Guerrero – Luvimetal SLU – ASCEM
French longs prices flatten
French steel prices have largely remained stable since the €10-15/tonne ($11-17/t) hike observed in March. Profitability remains a significant concern for flat and long steel producers, service centres, and end-users, Kallanish notes.
The outlook for May appears to be unfavourable, with multiple sources anticipating a decline in longs prices, as well as potential decreases in coil derivative values over the upcoming ten days.
“Seasonally, demand in May declines significantly. The market is dominated by significant uncertainty. Despite producers’ push for potential price increases, particularly for flat products, I do not see any increase happening in the coming weeks,” a steel purchasing group source comments. Another source forecasts a price decline in May for all steel products as a result of the seasonality and anticipated domestic scrap price fall.
Another buyer indicates margins are tight throughout the value chain. The first quarter saw lacklustre demand for longs, with only modest restocking occurring in January. Variations were noted based on geographical regions and sectors. The western region of France appears to be showing marginally better performance compared to east.
A rebar distributor in the south noted a period of subdued activity during January and February, followed by a modest improvement observed in March and the early days of April. Producers from Spain and Italy are entering the French market with competitive rebar pricing, thereby impacting sales of domestic products.
Domestic sections and merchant bar prices are flat. First category beams are at €780/t delivered while domestic merchant bar prices in France are observed at €250-260/t base delivered, with effective prices, inclusive of size extras, at €670-690/t delivered. The domestic rebar market is also flat. Values are hovering at €630-645/t delivered on average, sources suggest.
Natalia Capra France
German rebar defies scrap price drop
Despite the noteworthy decline of scrap prices over one month, German rebar mills are seen holding their values firm, supported by supply limitations.
An Austrian buyer expresses concern over the scrap price decline, by over $50/tonne in some cases. Rebar prices could follow with some delay. “So, if I buy at today’s prices, will I have to sell below that price in some weeks when mills’ prices come down?” he wonders.
Against that, a buyer at a big German distributor tells Kallanish that “German mills are laid back about it; they do not feel pressured because of low availability of material.” Another manager concurs, and adds that “the range of sorts in the [mills’] inventories is rather thin; your order will be served from new rollings.”
Riva’s rebar mill in Hennigsdorf near Berlin has remained idle since December. Some observers also believe that Badische Stahlwerke, after its merger with Van Merkensteijn, might shift more into production of wire rod than rebar.
Both German managers see domestic base prices at €420/t ($479) and above, which plus the size extra of €265 comes to €685/t. The Austrian buyer says he would be prepared to buy at €50/t below that in Austria, for domestic or Italian material. He also believes there will be more downward price pressure. The German price levels may work “when all mills are unanimous, but not if one starts making concessions,” he notes.
Christian Koehl Germany
Silence extends in European HRC market
As a result, offers provided earlier this week within the range of €680-700 ($776-799) per tonne ex-works found no support from buyers, who assessed workable prices varying mainly in the range of €650-660 per tonne ex-works.
As a result, Fastmarkets calculated its daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe at €654.74 per tonne on Tuesday, down by €1.26 per tonne from €656 per tonne on Monday.
Import HRC offers from Indonesia were reported at €600 per tonne DDP and slightly higher, but were left without customers’ interest either, according to market sources.
In Italy, HRC offers varied within the range of €620-640 per tonne ex-works, while workable levels were estimated in the range of $620-630 per tonne ex-works. Nevertheless, no major deals were heard done during the day.
“The market is in wait and see mode. All of my customers are on vacation or waiting for the Made in Steel event [to be held in Milan on May 6-8],” a trader said.
Thus, Fastmarkets’ daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Italy was calculated at €627.50 per tonne on Tuesday, stable day on day.
Sources also reported Indonesian HRC being available at €530-535 per tonne CFR Italy. Turkish material was offered at €560 per tonne DDP, while Indian HRC offers were heard at €580 per tonne CFR.
Published by: Vlada Novokreshchenova
Trump to provide US automakers with tariff relief for imported parts
Trump was expected to sign the order ahead of an evening rally at Macomb Community College in Macomb, Michigan, to celebrate his first 100 days in office.
Ahead of the order, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said, “This deal is a major victory for the President’s trade policy by rewarding companies who manufacture domestically while providing runway to manufacturers who have expressed their commitment to invest in America and expand their domestic manufacturing.”
Automakers are reportedly expected to receive credits for imported auto parts for as much as 15% of the value of vehicles assembled in the US.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Friday April 25, “There are exemptions and solutions for the auto industry with the President aiming to make the US a top destination for auto manufacturing.”
Bessent, who was interviewed on Fox Business, confirmed news reports that Trump’s order will eliminate “double tariffs” on imported autos and parts.
As a result, imports of cars and parts subject to a 25% auto tariff will not be charged an additional 25% Section 232 tariff, the secretary confirmed.
Under current trade rules, auto parts from Canada and Mexico that are compliant with the United-States Mexico-Canada Agreement do not face any tariffs.
Traders at IREPAS: No reduction in US tariffs expected, trade conditions remain challenging
During the panel session of the SteelOrbis Spring 2025 Conference & 92nd IREPAS Meeting held in Athens on April 27-29, F. D. Baysal from Seba International, the chairman of the traders committee, shared with conference participants the conclusions reached by traders regarding the current situation in certain markets, focusing on the US tariffs.
Regarding the US imposing new 25 percent tariffs on imports from the countries previously exempted from the Section 232 measures, Mr. Baysal stated that, although it seems like an advantage for the countries such as Egypt and Turkey which were already subject to 25 percent tariffs, only 18 percent of total imports into the US was from the Section 232-paying countries and 82 percent was from the exempted countries.
Adding that Turkey still faces antidumping and countervailing duties for most steel product exports to the US, he commented that, although the competition will still be a challenge for Turkey, at least Turkish exporters “will not have their hands tied behind their backs”.
He added that, despite the advantages some countries will gain, there will be no improvement in the market conditions given the economic uncertainties and the general market slowdown. Also, he said he believes that there will be no reduction in the US tariffs.
Regarding the impacts of exchange rate changes on trade, the Seba International official stated that the dollar, which is depreciating due to the uncertainty caused by the US administration’s actions, will give US scrap exporters a better advantage to compete with the EU. He noted that as raw materials are priced in dollars, the weak dollar leads to higher costs for EU producers.
Looking at the EU, he said there have been some reductions in the import quota volumes, resulting in more challenging trade conditions. Considering the increased sales of wire rod and HRC over the past quarter from the ASEAN region to the EU, Mr. Baysal noted that, even though there are some restrictions on certain ASEAN countries, the EU is now more open to those countries compared to its old traditional markets given the free trade agreements between the EU and some Southeast Asian countries.
Regarding China’s steel exports, Baysal stated that the sharp rise in the country’s long steel exports, as opposed to the decline in its flat steel exports, is due to the higher demand in developing countries with new infrastructure projects. He said he foresees no reduction in China’s exports and capacity utilization going forward.
UK publishes draft CBAM primary legislation for technical consultation
The draft outlines the legislative framework for the CBAM tax on certain imported goods into the UK, which will become effective from January 1, 2027.
The tax will apply to direct and indirect emissions embodied in the imported CBAM good.
“This represents continued momentum for the adoption of CBAM mechanisms globally, as countries follow in the EU’s footsteps to use trade as a tool for climate policy. It also helps better align policies in the UK and the EU, smoothing the way to progress linking of the UK and EU emissions trading systems, which will be a topic for discussion at the UK-EU Summit in May,” Stuart Evans, Fastmarkets’ chief economist and head of environmental markets, said.
As it stands, goods imported to the UK are not subject to the UK’s Emissions Trading System (ETS).
The ETS operates through a “cap and trade principle,” whereby the cap is set by the ETS and participants can trade emission allowances as needed.
CBAM aims to prevent carbon leakage in the UK, since imported goods not subject to the UK ETS have also not been subject to a similar carbon price from the jurisdiction they were produced in.
A “CBAM” good is defined in Schedule 1 of the draft primary legislation as:
- Aluminium
- Cement
- Fertilizers
- Hydrogen
- Iron and steel goods
Specific CBAM goods will be subsequently identified by commodity codes.
The CBAM tax rate will be charged “at an amount equal to the sectoral domestic price” of the good and multiplied by the number of tonnes of CO2 embodied in the good.
The “sectoral domestic price” will be calculated by the Treasury for each CBAM sector every quarter.
This would involve using the previous quarter’s average UK ETS auction price.
The importer will be liable to the CBAM cost, but exemptions are available if the good has originated in the UK, it has been returned or the good has been imported outside the course of business.
Registration with His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) will be required if CBAM goods with an aggregate value of £50,000 ($67,033) or more have been imported into the UK over 12 months, or it is expected that this quantity will be met before the end of a 30-day period.
According to the draft legislation, registration must occur within 30 days of triggering the above threshold.
The first accounting period for the CBAM tax will run from January 1, 2027, to December 31, 2027; returns and payments will be due five months after the end of the first accounting period (May 31, 2028) to provide businesses and HMRC sufficient time to adjust to the new system.
From January 1, 2028, CBAM costs are required every quarter and are due two months after the accounting period ends.
Initially the consultation proposal outlined quarterly accounting periods from 2028 with a one-month return and payment window. But after concerns around data availability were raised, this has been amended to two months, to bring greater alignment between CBAM and other UK tax models and provide businesses more time to gather the data required to submit their return.
As part of the submission, the government will allow the use of the most recently verified emissions data, and the most recently verified information to determine the “deductible carbon price.” According to the draft legislation, independently verified data or default values can be used by the importer.
From 2027, the government will proceed with a single default value per good, and the methodology for its calculation and publication will be confirmed prior to the beginning of CBAM in 2027.
The government noted that it is considering moving to an alternative approach from 2028 onward.
Importers can reduce their CBAM liability through a carbon price relief if the embodied emissions of the goods they have imported have previously been subject to a “deductible carbon price.”
This could be either through another country’s ETS or taxation.
In a previous consultation, the government confirmed that only explicit carbon prices that place a price per tCO2e can be used as part of this relief. Other policies, such as fuel duties or carbon regulations, are not allowed to form part of any deductions.
The UK government also proposed an exemption for goods that originated in a jurisdiction with a linked carbon pricing scheme, since carbon leakage risk would be minimal because the ETS prices would converge.
The consultation will end on July 3, and feedback is encouraged from all affected stakeholders.
UK-EU carbon markets relationship
The EU’s equivalent CBAM policy will come into effect on January 1, 2026, which has prompted other countries to look at setting up similar measures and their own ETS.
But the European Commission is planning to review legislative proposals amending CBAM in the fourth quarter this year, Fastmarkets recently reported.
The proposed amendments will be in three directions — to address the problem of carbon leakage for CBAM goods exported from the EU to third countries; to introduce CBAM scope extension to certain steel downstream products, to address the risk of carbon leakage being pushed further down the value chain; and to propose anti-circumvention measures, including those against resource shuffling.
Harmonizing CBAM policies between the UK and EU would provide domestic producers a way to offset associated CBAM costs when exporting to the UK through domestic pricing schemes.
The UK is at risk to lose £3.5 billion-8 billion in revenue from 2025 to 2030 if it remains outside the EU carbon market, since UK ETS allowance prices are lower than those in the EU, a UK Energy report from October 2024 shows.
“The UK Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) is 10 times smaller, more volatile and, since mid-2022, has been priced lower than the EU ETS… A lower UK carbon price leads to reduced revenues for Treasury and lessens the incentive to decarbonize,” the report reads.
“Analysis by Frontier Economics projects shows that the introduction of the EU CBAM will lead to £800 million being paid to EU member states on export across all impacted sectors between 2026 and 2030,” it continued.
For example, in January 2025, UK ETS allowance prices were just around £32.57 per tCO2e. In contrast, EU carbon emissions allowance prices hovered around €71.52 ($74.06) per tCO2e in Janaury 2025, peaked at over €81 per tCO2e in mid-February, and then dropped below €60 per tCO2e in early April.
The projected average price for the year is around €75 per tCO2e, which is 15% higher than in 2024, according to the outlook for European Union Allowance, the financial instruments within the EU Emissions Trading System.