Year: 2026

European heavy plate prices held largely stable in the week to 31 July as the market started its summer slowdown.

Spot demand was said to be weak across the European market, but mill orderbooks remain tight due to lesser import accessibility following the entry into force of the EU’s intensified tariff-rate quota (TRQ) regime at the start of July.

In Northwest Europe, price indications for s235jr commodity grade were reported on a wide range centering around EUR820/t ex-works Germany, while in Italy heavy plate was available at EUR690-700/t ex-works, though some indications, especially for project-based demand, were reported higher at EUR710-750/t ex-works. Overall, market participants anticipate increased prices once trading returns substantively after the summer, with a quiet few weeks in the interim.

German sources report very limited volumes available for fresh September production, both due to purchasing ahead of expected offer price increases post-holidays, as well as a 250,000 t booking for a US-based project, resulting in strong purchases from German mills for delivery later this year. As a result, only one German mill was said to have general spot volumes remaining – potentially for the rest of 2026 – with allocations otherwise restricted to special or affiliated customers.

Input slab costs for re-rollers – particularly dominant in Italy – were reported in a range of $560-580/t CIF, clustering toward the lower end of said range. Larger buyers expected to secure deals at a slight discount of around $550/t CIF, and have reported renewed aggression from foreign producers in the semi-finished steel segment now that the EU’s duty-free volumes have been tightened for their traditional finished steel exports.

Author: Benjamin Steven and Maria Tanatar

opisnet.com

The European Commission has launched a targeted consultation requesting feedback on the product scope of the EU’s new steel tariff-rate quotas (TRQs), as part of the measure’s embedded review mechanisms. 

The consultation is open until 30 September, and seeks responses from steel producers and consumers, importers, traders, and consultants, as well as various associations and authorities across the steel value chain.

Under the new steel regulation – which entered into force 1 July, intensifying the EU’s steel tariff-rate quota system – the Commission is compelled to assess the “necessity” of adding additional steel products via legislative amendment to its protective coverage before end-of-year, more specifically:

• Tubes, pipes, and hollow profiles of cast iron (7303 00 10, 7303 00 90)
• Non alloy and other alloy wire (7229 20 00, 7229 90 20, 7229 90 50, 7229 90 90);
• Stainless wire (7223 00 11, 7223 00 19, 7223 00 91, 7223 00 99);
• Non alloy and other alloy forged bars (7214 10 00, 7228 10 50, 7228 40 10, 7228 40 90)

The questionnaire asks respondents whether they perceive any effects from global overcapacity on the EU market across the listed product categories, and to submit relevant evidence, as well as reciprocity-based questions on similar market access policies in third countries. Dedicated questions for steel producers seek responses on circumvention routes; while sections for downstream users investigate potential domestic supply and cost inflation risks, and the substitutability of said product categories in downstream processing.

Further review mechanisms within the regulation would then assess extension to imports of downstream steel-containing goods, by 30 June 2027.

McCloskey’s market sources have described the entry into force of the EU’s new steel TRQs as a “new era” for European steel trade, due to the complexity of the new measure, significant cuts to duty-free import volumes across trading partners, and the doubling of out-of-quota duty rates to 50%.

A primary concern that remains for market participants, however, is that protective efforts for upstream goods risks downstream steel consuming industries being forced to replace their domestic steel sourcing and processing operations with the substitutive import of comparatively unshielded finished manufactured goods, to sustain their competitiveness on the global market.

While this consultation will be welcomed by many in the steel value chain, others will likely see the proposed extension as much too slow, such as European steel trade and distribution association EUROMETAL, which has repeatedly called for more immediate and wide-ranging protections for steel-containing goods to prevent – or at least mitigate – an irreversible loss of domestic steel-consuming industrial capacity and demand.

Author: Benjamin Steven

opisnet.com

US investment firm Flacks Group has updated its bid to acquire Italian steelmaker Acciaierie d’Italia (ADI), formerly known as Ilva, after the Milan Court of Appeal ordered the shutdown of the hot production area, Flacks Group told McCloskey.

On 27 July, the Milan Court of Appeal ordered that ADI shut down operations in the hot section of its Taranto steel plant within the next 90 days. The Milan court originally ordered the suspension of production at the plant on health grounds in late February 2026, but the ruling was conditional on the completion of the required environmental interventions.

Flacks Group developed the updated proposal through the newly established company Flacksider, with the objective of ensuring industrial continuity and building a new low-emission steelmaking facility.

Flacksider’s proposal includes the participation of Flacks Group together with other strategic partners, including equipment supplier Danieli and Ukrainian group Metinvest, according to Flacks Group. The company also believes that state involvement will be crucial to support the industrial transition.

“The Italian government acknowledged that the current sale process can no longer continue under its original terms,” a Flacks Group source said. “For this reason, the government announced that a new tender process will be launched, as the previous one covered both the hot-end and cold-end operations and has effectively been overtaken by the court’s ruling.”

The Italian authorities have not announced the schedule for the new tender yet. The next meeting to analyse the updated proposals will be held by the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy (MIMIT) on 5 August.

Another potential buyer is India’s Jindal Steel, which expressed interest in acquiring ADI in March, returning to the race for the mill after withdrawing in 2025.

Before the recent court order, potential buyers had presented decarbonisation plans to replace the existing blast furnaces (BFs) with a direct-reduced iron (DRI)-electric arc furnace (EAF) production route to reduce emissions. In addition, market participants suggested that Jindal Steel would also ship low-CO2 steel slab from its new plant in Oman to re-roll at ADI.

To learn more about decarbonization projects in Italy, Oman and globally – see McCloskey’s Global Green Steel Profile.

Flacks Group criticized Jindal Steel, claiming that “the future of Taranto should be based on new low-emission steelmaking facilities located in Italy, capable of ensuring industrial production, employment and Europe’s strategic autonomy.”

Author: Maria Tanatar

opisnet.com

The European Commission proposed a reform of the EU’s Emissions Trading System (ETS) in mid-July to better align climate and industrial realities, but while suggested changes to the ‘CBAM factor’ would eventually grant discounted liabilities under the instrument, upfront costs remain prohibitive for many steel trade routes. 

Proposed changes to the ‘CBAM factor’ – the EU’s ratcheting replacement to free allocation, to address carbon leakage concerns – would reintroduce 15% of phased-out emissions allowances (EUAs) as a buffer, extending the curve of free allocation reductions out to 2038.

Proposed ETS free allocation phase-out rate (CBAM factor)

Source: European Commission July ETS review proposal

Other elements of the Commission’s proposals would adjust ETS mechanisms like the Linear Reduction Factor and Market Stability Reserve, intending to prevent carbon price inflation (and volatility) beyond what domestic industry can handle as it pursues decarbonisation of its processes without overly undermining global competitiveness.

Despite these changes, CAMIRO’s short and long-term forecasts still see EUA prices gradually escalating to break the EUR200 barrier post-2033, with higher prices expected 2026-2027 in line with post-review increases above EUR80.

Beyond EUA price effects, as McCloskey detailed in the lead-up to the July ETS review, CBAM already threatens sky-high costs when using ‘default’ emissions values, especially from recently disruptive origins like Indonesia. Trading sources also fear that the EU’s new and intensified tariff-rate quota regime for steel imports could lessen exporter willingness to properly invest in emissions monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) processes necessary to report ‘actual’ emissions values in CBAM declarations as a result of their reduced market access, further compounding cost risks.

This week, the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) released its “State of Border Carbon Adjustments 2026” report, finding that businesses are already being confronted with less evident compliance costs from necessary investments in IT infrastructure, supply chain data collection, and the demands of verification – particularly burdensome on upstream small- and medium-sized enterprises.

IISD also track the development of Border Carbon Adjustments (BCAs) worldwide as jurisdictions seek to reclaim climate revenues within their own borders (via CBAM deductions for ‘carbon prices already paid’), which could then compound these compliance costs significantly as different BCA methodologies and implementations hit globalised supply chains from different angles without supportive interoperability.

The European Commission’s proposed adjustment to free allocation via the CBAM factor is suggested to return phased-out EUAs to ETS supply from 2028, with the inaugural years of the definitive stage remaining unchanged in terms of effective emissions liabilities. That is around the same time as the proposed extension of the EU CBAM to downstream products, which also contains new anti-circumvention provisions seeking to ensure the accuracy and integrity of reporting for emissions embedded in imported goods. The regulation is working its way through the initial stages of the EU’s tripartite legislative process, with variations of the product scope and anti-circumvention provisions suggested by the Commission, and Parliamentary committees.

Generally, these anti-circumvention provisions would target origins engaging in “abusive practices,” specifically emphasising “resource shuffling,” in which exporters designate portions of their production – via specific installations – for export to the EU, purely to minimise CBAM liabilities without engaging in full-scale emissions reductions.

The latest parliamentary amendments propose to apply “country-level default values […] systematically and ex ante to combinations of countries and goods defined as being at high risk of abusive practices,” introducing yet another cost risk for importers beyond their direct control. In identifying groups of origins or goods at risk of circumvention, it is suggested that the Commission considers a wide range of flexible factors, including the mere fact of capacity to circumvent; dubious reporting trends; the decarbonisation reality of relevant installations; and perhaps most controversially, “the existence of EU anti-dumping or anti-subsidy measures in force against the country in the relevant sector.”

As detailed by McCloskey’s Steel Trade Protection Measures Database, the EU currently has over 70 different trade defense instruments (TDIs) in force, or under review across a range of steel and steel-containing goods against different trading partners: China; Egypt; India; Indonesia; Iran; Japan; Malaysia; Russia; South Korea; Taiwan, China; Thailand; Turkey; the US; and Vietnam. The European Commission also committed to taking a more proactive approach to trade defense in last year’s Steel and Metals Action Plan (SMAP), lessening its legal test for investigation to the threat, rather than realisation, of injury to its domestic industries.

These TDIs apply cumulatively with the EU’s new steel TRQs, which have themselves been challenged as noncompliant with World Trade Organisation rules (as has CBAM, as tracked by the IISD report), layering potentially self-reinforcing cost risks for steel importers throughout the EU’s trade – and now climate – framework.

Gerold Lorenz, Managing Director of trading house INTERFER Group, asks on social media whether CBAM is thus increasingly becoming a “trade protection measure,” stating that “trade policy criteria such as existing trade-defence measures have no place in a climate instrument.”

“If verified emissions data can be set aside because of broader country-level trade-policy considerations, CBAM risks moving beyond carbon accounting and becoming a de facto trade protection instrument,” Lorenz writes.

Overall, the Commission’s July policy package, and suggested ETS reform appears to do little to mitigate CBAM costs for importers, despite its headline amendments to the “CBAM factor.” Initial costs under CBAM are still prohibitive in many cases, and the real cost drivers – the risk of having to use default emissions values – remain unchanged, or could even be intensified should anti-circumvention elements mandate their use for specific product groups or origins, or if the EU’s increasingly burdensome trade protection framework disincentivises exporters from sufficiently engaging with Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) preparations.

Author: Benjamin Steven

opisnet.com

The European Commission has launched a targeted consultation to seek feedback from industry stakeholders on the product scope of its new Steel Regulation which came into force from July 1, it said in a statement July 30.

The consultation follows Article 12.1 of the framework regulation of June 17, which requires the Commission to assess the necessity of expanding the product coverage to the following categories:

• Tubes, pipes and hollow profiles, of cast iron
• Non-alloy and other alloy wire
• Stainless wire
• Non-alloy and other alloy forged bars

The Steel Regulation, which has cut overall tariff quota volumes by 47%, increased the out-of-quota duty rate to 50%, and introduced a melt-and-pour origin rule, is currently only applicable to 30 product categories. As a result, market participants have noted that this could lead to goods further down the value chain being imported into the EU quota-free, undermining the purpose of the regulation.

The consultation will run for eight weeks from July 28 to Sept. 28, with the Commission set to analyze submissions and finalize its product‑scope assessment by Dec. 31.

Domestic steel prices in Europe have increased since the new regulation came into operation, particularly after the country-specific quotas were published on June 30, as import availability has tightened significantly.

Platts, part of S&P Global Energy, last assessed domestic hot-rolled coil in Northern Europe July 29 at Eur715/mt ex-works Ruhr, up Eur35 since July 1. In Southern Europe, domestic HRC was last assessed at Eur705/mt ex-works Italy, also up Eur35 across the same period.

Price expectations are also bullish in the European steel market for Q4, when the true impact of the measures should be seen as participants are now able to adjust their trading strategies with at least some regulatory clarity.

Author: Riley Waters 

spglobal.com

Romania’s longs market has entered an even quieter phase this week, with demand remaining limited and prices broadly stable. As the summer holiday period gathers pace across Europe, an increasing number of companies have become inactive, further reducing the already weak trading activity. Under these conditions, local traders and the country’s sole rebar producer have maintained their prices, while discounts remain available for serious buyers. Despite the generally slow domestic and import activity, an unconfirmed rumour has surfaced this week regarding a recent Turkish rebar sale to the Balkan region, with Romania or Bulgaria reported as possible destinations.

According to market sources, around 5,000-12,000 mt of Turkish rebar may have been sold recently to the Balkan region, possibly to Romania or Bulgaria, at approximately $565-570/mt FOB. However, neither the transaction nor its final destination has been confirmed so far.

On the import side, Turkish rebar offers are currently heard at around €520-540/mt CFR Romania, compared to €520-530/mt CFR Romania last week. Egyptian rebar offers have decreased to approximately €530-540/mt CFR Romania, compared to €530-545/mt CFR Romania last week, while Egyptian wire rod offers are currently heard at around €540-555/mt CFR Romania, versus €535-555/mt CFR Romania in the previous week. Bulgarian rebar offers have remained unchanged at approximately €660-670/mt CPT Romania. Hungarian rebar offers have also remained stable at around €650/mt delivered, while Hungarian rebar in-coil prices are still heard at approximately €670/mt delivered.

In the domestic market, rebar spot quotations have remained unchanged at around €630-640/mt ex-warehouse. Beltrame Group’s official rebar offers are still heard at approximately €635-640/mt ex-works, while discounted levels of around €620-630/mt ex-works remain available depending on the buyer and transaction volume. Domestic wire rod prices have also remained stable at around €670-690/mt ex-warehouse, with purchasing activity continuing at very low levels.

Author: SteelOrbis Editorial Team

steelorbis.com

The Bulgarian longs market is entering August with activity already at a low level, as purchasing decisions are being postponed, company operations are slowing, and discussions are largely limited to immediate requirements. The holiday period is expected to reduce activity further over the coming weeks, with most participants seeing little prospect of a noticeable improvement before late August. However, the current situation is not solely linked to seasonal absences, as consumption had already been weak, and limited liquidity continued to restrict buyers’ ability to place regular orders. As a result, uncertainty remains over the extent of any recovery once the holiday period ends.

Local quotations have remained unchanged this week. Rebar is still available at around €630-640/mt CPT, while wire rod prices stand at approximately €670-680/mt CPT.

Import activity has also remained limited, although reports of a possible Turkish rebar booking into the Balkan region have generated discussion among Bulgarian market participants. No local buyer has been identified, and views remain divided over whether Bulgaria was involved. Some sources believe that the absence of recent import activity makes a Bulgarian destination unlikely, while others consider that part of the reported 5,000-12,000 mt cargo may have been allocated to the country. The deal is understood to have been discussed at around $565-570/mt FOB, but neither the buyer nor the final destination has been confirmed.

Currently, Turkish rebar offers are heard at around $565-580/mt FOB, compared to $565-575/mt FOB last week. With freight to Bulgaria estimated at approximately €20-25/mt, the corresponding delivered levels stand at around €515-535/mt CFR, versus €515-525/mt CFR in the previous week. Meanwhile, Egyptian rebar offers are reported at around $570-575/mt FOB, while wire rod quotations are at approximately $580-590/mt FOB. Freight from Egypt is estimated at €25-30/mt, bringing rebar offers to around €525-535/mt CFR, compared to €525-540/mt CFR last week, and wire rod prices to €535-550/mt CFR, versus €530-550/mt CFR previously. According to market sources, Italian rebar offers have also been heard at around €620-630/mt CFR Bulgaria.

European domestic long steel prices remained stable in the week to Wednesday July 29, with market participants reporting increased buying activity ahead of August closures, when many producers are expected to halt production for two to three weeks. At the same time, mills continued to target higher prices, supported by restocking activity described by one market participant as “hamster buying.”
“These days demand is good; customers, as usual, remember at the last moment that producers are closing for two-three weeks, so they are restocking,” a trader source told Fastmarkets.

In Italy, tradable levels were reported at €690-750 ($787-855) per tonne ex-works, although no transactions were reported at the upper end of the range.

Deals were heard at €690-730 per tonne ex-works, with offers and indications also reported within that range. Higher indicative offers of €750 per tonne ex-works were reported as well, but no deals were heard at that level, although mills continued to target higher prices ahead of the summer closure.

Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, exw Italy, remained stable at €690-730 per tonne on Wednesday July 29, unchanged from the previous week.

Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, delivered Spain, remained unchanged at €750 per tonne.

Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, delivered Northern Europe, remained unchanged at €710-730 per tonne on July 29.

Wire rod prices mirrored the broader stability seen across the European long steel market during the assessment week.

In Southern Europe, tradable levels for mesh-quality wire rod were reported at €660-680 per tonne delivered.

Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel wire rod (mesh quality), domestic, delivered Southern Europe, remained at €660-680 per tonne on July 29.

In Northern Europe, tradable levels for mesh-quality wire rod were reported at €705-715 per tonne delivered.

Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel wire rod (mesh quality), domestic, delivered Northern Europe, remained unchanged at €705-715 per tonne on July 29.