The year ahead will be challenging for sales and margins, says Polish distributor Bowim, after 2023 saw weakening European demand and falling prices that prompted mills to limit production or shipments.
In 2023, high energy prices curbed industrial production and new investments in Europe, and therefore also steel demand, while the construction sector downturn also hit steel requirement. Persistent inflationary pressure and high interest rates exacerbated the situation, Bowim observes.
Bowim’s shipments were flat on-year in 2023 at 501,697 tonnes, with sheet accounting for 201,574t, slightly up on-year. Pipe and profiles were also up slightly to 94,694t, while rebar sales jumped 28% to 82,485t. However, deliveries of merchant bar and prefabricated steel reinforcement dropped, Kallanish notes.
Consolidated revenue in 2023 fell 25% on-year to PLN 2.07 billion ($506.3 million) and net profit plummeted 88% to PLN 13.3m.
Adam Smith Poland
