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A broad coalition of European steel producers, distributors, processors and downstream manufacturers is urging the European Commission and EU member states to take immediate action to protect the continent’s steel and metals value chain from what it describes as an accelerating process of deindustrialisation.

The call-to-action, coordinated by EUROMETAL and supported by more than 350 companies and 40 national associations, has been formally submitted to EU governments and the European Commission. It outlines a comprehensive package of trade, energy and industrial policy measures aimed at stabilising the sector under increasingly challenging global conditions. EUROMETAL said in a statement that the initiative reflects an “unprecedented level of alignment” across the industry.

Presenting the initiative at Wire & Tube 2026 in Düsseldorf, EUROMETAL President Alexander Julius underlined the urgency of the situation, describing it as a joint effort “supported by the entire steel value chain” and warning of “the looming loss of industrial core competencies in Europe.”

Immediate trade measures at the center of industry demands

At the core of the proposal is a demand for stronger and immediately applicable trade defence instruments. The signatories are calling for a new regime to replace the current EU steel safeguard measures, including tariffs and tariff-rate quotas covering not only steel but also derivatives and steel-intensive products (CN codes 73–95).

The objective is to ensure fair competition and prevent circumvention, particularly in light of increasingly sophisticated trade diversion practices. The proposal also stresses the need to align EU measures with those already in place in major markets such as the United States and Canada.

Julius pointed to “massive cost pressures” and a lack of effective protection mechanisms as key challenges facing European companies.

CBAM extension seen as key to protecting downstream industry

A second key element is the extension of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) to downstream and steel-intensive products. The signatories argue that limiting CBAM to primary steel risks shifting carbon leakage further along the value chain, undermining both industrial activity and climate objectives in Europe.

By expanding CBAM coverage, the alliance aims to prevent the relocation of value creation to third countries and to ensure that decarbonisation efforts remain economically viable within the EU.

“Made in EU” push aims to strengthen strategic autonomy

The initiative also calls for the introduction of stronger “Made in EU” requirements, particularly in public procurement and funding schemes. This includes infrastructure projects, defence procurement, tax incentives and support for e-mobility.

According to the signatories, prioritising European-produced materials is essential to preserve industrial capabilities, secure supply chains and maintain strategic autonomy in critical sectors.

Energy costs and regulatory burden weigh on competitiveness

High energy costs remain a central concern. The signatories point in particular to persistently high energy and regulatory costs in Europe, combined with global trade distortions and protectionist measures by third countries.

The call-to-action proposes reducing industrial electricity prices to a maximum of 5 ct/kWh, alongside a review of the EU Emissions Trading System and a slower phase-out of free allowances under CBAM. In addition, the alliance is calling for a reduction in regulatory burdens at both EU and national level to improve the overall competitiveness of European industry.

Julius stressed that many companies, particularly SMEs, are already under significant strain.

Millions of jobs linked to steel value chain at risk

The document highlights the broader economic implications, estimating that more than 13 million direct jobs in the steel and metals sector are at risk, with up to 65 million jobs indirectly linked to the industry.

At the press conference, Julius reinforced the scale of the issue, stating that “more than one million direct jobs” are already under acute pressure and pointing to the wider employment footprint of the metals sector across Europe.

The signatories argue that such losses would not only weaken Europe’s industrial base but also increase dependence on third countries and place additional pressure on social systems.

Policy response now decisive for Europe’s industrial future

While reaffirming support for the EU’s climate targets, the alliance emphasizes that decarbonisation must be accompanied by globally competitive framework conditions. Without this balance, the transition to low-carbon steel production could accelerate the relocation of industry rather than strengthen it within Europe.

At the press conference, Julius reiterated that the initiative reflects concerns across the entire value chain, describing it as “an European Initiative supported by the entire steel value chain.” He again pointed to “massive cost pressures” and rising strain on companies, particularly SMEs.

The call-to-action now puts the issue squarely on the political agenda in Brussels and the member states. Whether and how policymakers respond — particularly on trade defence, energy pricing and CBAM design — is likely to shape not only the future of European steelmaking, but also the broader industrial base that depends on it.

Following the press conference, moderator Gesa Gröning conducted an exclusive video interview with EUROMETAL President Alexander Julius for marketSTEEL.

The full initiative, including the option to sign the call-to-action, is available at: steelindustrynow.eu

Author: MarketSteel Editorial Team

marketsteel.com

Domestic prices in the European steel heavy plate market were mostly stable in the week to Thursday April 16, while imports into Germany saw a slight increase, sources told Fastmarkets.

Steel plate prices had previously been increasing after energy and slab costs increased following the US/Israel attacks on Iran on February 28 and its wide-ranging response across the region, including the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Southern Europe
Deals for Italian plate were heard in the week to Thursday at €750-780 ($876-911) per tonne ex-works, unchanged from orders a week earlier, with the lower end of the range applicable to larger volumes, while the higher end was linked to smaller lots, sources said.

One trader said that offers in Italy had reached €800-830 per tonne ex-works during the week, up from €800 per tonne ex-works, due to rising production costs, but no deals were reported.

Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel domestic plate, 8-40mm, exw Southern Europe, was €750-780 per tonne on Thursday, unchanged from April 9.

On April 9, market participants reported only moderate demand for plate in Italy, while expecting higher cost pressures on re-rollers because of rising slab feedstock costs and tight slab supplies.

Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel slab, import, cif Italy, was $600-620 per tonne on Thursday, up from $590-620 per tonne a week earlier.

The steel plate import market was moving slowly, meanwhile, with one producer putting the workable level from Asia to Spain at €700-750 per tonne CFR, unchanged week on week.

Larger import deals in Italy were heard at €790-800 per tonne DDP from India, Japan and South Korea, sources said, but these were not included in Fastmarkets assessment, which only covers CFR prices.

Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel plate (8-40mm), import, cfr main port Southern Europe, was €664-700 per tonne on Thursday, unchanged from April 9.

Northern Europe
In Germany’s domestic market, steel plate was on offer at €800-830 per tonne ex-works in the week to Thursday, unchanged from previous levels, but no fresh trade were reported in a quiet market.

One trader reported an offer at €830-840 per tonne DAP Ruhr for S235 grade plate, but this was not included in the assessment, which is for ex-works material.

Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel domestic plate 8-40mm, exw Northern Europe, was €800-830 per tonne on Thursday, unchanged from April 9.

Plate imports into Germany were reported at €700-750 per tonne CFR for Asia-origin cargoes, while plate from Indonesia on offer at €725 per tonne CFR Antwerp.

DDP offers to Antwerp were heard at €790-800 per tonne from India, Japan and South Korea, but were not included in Fastmarkets’ CFR basis assessment.

Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel plate (8-40mm), import, cfr main port Northern Europe, was €700-725 per tonne on Thursday, up from €650-700 per tonne a week earlier.

Europe’s green steel market remained quiet in the week to Friday April 17, with spot activity near zero. But a couple of major green steel projects have moved forward, Fastmarkets heard.

Recent developments from Marcegaglia and Stegra point to continued investment in electric-arc furnace (EAF) technology and hydrogen-based steelmaking, while the industry works toward lowering emissions and improving supply sustainability in a difficult market environment.

Green steel projects progress
Marcegaglia
Italian re-roller Marcegaglia advanced its electric-furnace project implementation. On April 14, it awarded equipment supplier Danieli a €450 million contract for construction and spares for a new EAF and flat rolling facility in Fos-sur-Mer, France.

The project, named Mistral, has total capex in the range of €1 billion. It will include an EAF, a single strand continuous slab caster producing thick slabs, and a conventional hot strip mill.

Once completed, the new EAF will have capacity for more than 2 million tonnes per year of liquid steel and as much as 3 million tpy of stainless and carbon steel hot-rolled coil. This will cover approximately 35% of the Marcegaglia group’s total coil and slab demand, primarily supplying downstream facilities in Italy, the company said.

The company also highlighted the “green” nature of the project. The use of scrap, low carbon hot-briquetted iron (HBI) and nuclear and renewable energy will enable as much as 80% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions compared with traditional methods.

The final investment decision on the project was expected no later than the end of 2026, following completion of the permitting process and other conditions currently in advanced negotiation with the relevant French institutions.

Marcegaglia is one of the major HRC buyers in Italy, with estimated import volumes of 4-5 million tpy.

It operates as a re-roller and can produce about 2.4 million tpy of cold-rolled coil and about 1.9 million tpy of coated coil at its Ravenna site in Italy. The company also has a plate-producing facility in San Giorgio di Nogaro, as well as tube-welding facilities in north-eastern Italy.

Stegra
On April 14, Sweden-based green steelmaker Stegra agreed in principle on €1.4 billion in new financing from a combination of new and existing investors to complete the construction of its large-scale green steel plant in Boden, Sweden.

As for overall financing, Stegra earlier announced funding of about €6.5 billion. This includes €250 million from the EU innovation fund and a public grant in Sweden. A public grant in Sweden was approved for €265 million. And €143 million has been fulfilled through the Industrial Leap program

Industry sources told Fastmarkets that Stegra has completed around 60-70% of the construction work, with production expected to commence around the first half of 2027. Stegra, however, did not confirm that when contacted by Fastmarkets. “We have not gone out with new numbers on project completion [construction works is only a part of that, which also includes engineering and procurement] and we have also clarified that the timeline is under review,” a spokesperson told Fastmarkets on April 17.

Capacity for direct-reduction iron (DRI) was expected to amount to 2.1 million tonnes, with 2.5 million tpy of HRC capacity planned. By 2030, the plant was expected to produce about 5 million tpy of green steel and use an electrolysis capacity of 700MW.

The company also planned to sell green DRI/HBI in the European market, with some volumes already sold, Fastmarkets heard.

“We are selling the surplus HBI to other steelmakers until we have phase 2 completed and then we will consume it ourselves,” the spokesperson said.

Buyers reluctant to pay premiums for green steel
Meanwhile, spot market demand for reduced-emissions steel was still constrained, with buyers unwilling to absorb high premiums.

Market sources cited both pricing pressures and the lack of clear, harmonized definitions and standards in Europe as barriers to wider adoption.

Under Fastmarkets’ methodology, European green flat steel refers to material produced with combined Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions not exceeding 0.8 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of steel.

According to buyers, workable premiums for reduced-emissions steel were generally in the range of €100-150 per tonne, with some deals reported concluded at minimal or zero premiums for strategic or branding considerations. Producers, however, argued that viable premiums should be closer to €150-170 per tonne.

A mill source reported small-tonnage deals for 100-500 tonnes done with premiums at €150-160 per tonne, but admitted that interest in green products overall remained weak.

As a result, Fastmarkets’ weekly assessment of the green steel domestic, flat-rolled, differential to HRC index, exw Northern Europe, was little changed week on week at a premium of €100-160 per tonne on April 16, widening upward from €100-150 per tonne seven days earlier.

The corresponding weekly green steel, differential to steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, delivered Northern Europe, narrowed €0-25 per tonne on April 15, from €0-30 per tonne per tonne on April 8.

Fastmarkets’ methodology defines European green long steel as steel produced with Scope 1, 2 or 3 emissions at a maximum of 0.5 tonnes of CO2 emissions per tonne of steel.

One German producer noted that there has recently been some increase in local interest in green material, but normally demand comes from Nordic countries and the UK. Nevertheless, customers were not ready to pay any premiums.

Another supplier said that the company was charging €25-50 per tonne premium for its material with reduced carbon content, but noted that demand has dropped this year compared with 2023 and 2024.

A supplier from Southern Europe also said that green material procurement is definitely not a priority in Europe at the moment, due to the caution in the market driven by the geopolitical uncertainty in the global arena.

The European domestic market for steel hot-rolled coil became subdued in mid-April, despite expectations of a rebound at the time of the Tube and Wire trade fair in Dusseldorf, Germany, over April 13-17.

Trading remained muted because neither sellers nor buyers needed to move significant volumes of material. Customers’ stocks were said to be sufficient high, with both domestic and imported material booked early to secure availability before the EU’s new trade regime comes into force on July 1.

As a result, estimates of workable prices in Northern Europe retreated to €700-710 ($826-837) per tonne ex-works on April 17, from €700-720 per tonne ex-works earlier in the month.

At the same time, European suppliers continue to seek higher prices for July delivery material, with stricter new safeguard measures being the key factor rather than real demand.

Earlier in the week ended April 17, the European Council and European Parliament reached a provisional agreement on a new trade regime. A new tariff-rate quota (TRQ) system was now set to replace the existing steel safeguard measures, starting from July 1.

Several integrated mills indicated preliminary target offers at €750-770 per tonne ex-works for July-delivery coil, which were considered to be high by customers.

The mills were expected to come back with firm offers for third-quarter delivery coil once the country-specific TRQ volumes were revealed.

Fastmarkets’ daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe, was €708.33 per tonne on April 17, down by €1.15 per tonne day on day.

The index was also down by €11.67 per tonne week on week and down by €1.80 per tonne month on month.

The Italian market was also quiet, with €700-710 per tonne said to be the workable price on April 17, compared with €690-700 per tonne ex-works earlier in April.

Material supply in the country was reduced at the moment due to the suspension of HRC production at the beginning of April because of technical issues affecting a local re-roller. Operations were expected to be resumed in May.

In Northern Europe, an integrated producer from the Benelux area was also experiencing technical issues, resulting in a lack of material.

Fastmarkets’ daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Italy, was calculated at €700.00 per tonne ex-works on April 17, up by €1.25 per tonne from €698.75 per tonne on April 16.

The index was stable week-on week but up by €2.50 per tonne month on month.

On imports, there was information circulating in the market about a 25,000 tonnes cargo of Algerian HRC being booked at $800 per tonne for Southern Europe. A majority of market sources thought this price too high, but one source reported an offer from Algeria at $800 per tonne CFR.

Turkish HRC was said to be available at €640-665 per tonne CFR including anti-dumping duty, but excluding costs relating to the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM).

Indian coil was heard offered at $710 per tonne CFR.

The European Commission has announced that it has approved a €3.8 billion state aid scheme for Germany aimed at supporting energy-intensive industries through temporary electricity price relief.

The measures fall under the Clean Industrial Deal State Aid Framework and are designed to address rising energy costs while supporting decarbonization.

Focus on competitiveness and carbon transition

The scheme targets industries exposed to international competition and at risk of relocation due to high electricity prices.

In addition to providing cost relief, beneficiary companies are required to reinvest a significant portion of the aid into climate-friendly technologies such as electrification and energy efficiency improvements.

The support program will run from January 2026 to December 2028. Companies will apply for compensation annually, based on actual electricity consumption and wholesale price levels.

The European Commission stated that the scheme is necessary, appropriate, and proportionate, as it addresses both competitiveness concerns and climate objectives. By combining cost relief with mandatory green investment, the framework aims to strengthen industrial resilience while advancing the transition toward net-zero emissions.

Steel sector raises concerns over effectiveness

Following the approval, German Steel Federation (WV Stahl) CEO Kerstin Maria Rippel stated that while the decision is a positive step, the framework’s current design limits its effectiveness for energy-intensive sectors such as steel.

According to Rippel, the mechanism applies only to a portion of electricity consumption and cannot be combined with existing carbon electricity price compensation schemes.

Calls for more flexible state aid rules

Industry stakeholders have called for adjustments to EU state aid rules, particularly under the proposed Temporary Iran Crisis Energy Framework, which is expected to provide greater flexibility. The German steel sector has urged the government to actively support these changes at the EU level.

In this context, WV Stahl continues to advocate for a reliable electricity price of €50/MWh, including all associated costs such as network charges, taxes, and levies. Such a benchmark is seen as critical to maintaining international competitiveness while enabling the transition toward climate-neutral steel production.

European carbon prices traded under the ETS scheme are expected to quickly rise to up to €185/tonne ($218/t) in 2035, according to BloombergNEF estimates.

As allowances are reduced, the EU ETS price is set to increase from €75/t in the first quarter to an average of €86/t for full-year 2026 and €142/t in 2031, BloombergNEF analysts said in a webinar on Thursday attended by Kallanish.

Brussels must tighten the number of emissions allowances available in the bloc’s carbon market to see meaningful emission reductions in hard-to-abate industries, suggested Allen Abraham, head of sustainable materials at BNEF.

“The EU is trying to reduce the amount of free allocated emission allowances to various sectors, especially those covered by CBAM today, like steel, cement and aluminium,” he explained. “And that means the carbon exposure for these CBAM-covered goods is going to increase substantially, and the carbon prices in the EU ETS are also expected to rise substantially this year.”

Iron and steel accounted for 70% of the imported goods covered by the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) in 2024, by volume and value, BNEF estimates. The largest exporters of CBAM-covered iron and steel were mainland China, Turkey, India and the UK.

While clarity is still needed on calculating costs, Abraham warned that the default values proposed by the European Commission could distort competitiveness between markets. That is because these default emissions obligations are set at conservative levels, and in certain cases, much higher than actual emissions, noted Brynne Merkley, European energy transitions associate at BNEF.

The move is intended to force companies to verify the embedded emissions of the goods with EU-accredited institutions. The analysts said the default values are “highly punitive for most products”.

For hot-rolled steel imports, for example, BNEF projects a default CBAM cost increase of nearly 30% for mainland Chinese material and 33% for Russian material. India could see an increased cost of 45%, while Canada and Brazil benefit from low costs and increases of around 4% and 6%, respectively. Imports from South Korea, Turkey and Ukraine could see rises of up to 20%.

“The default obligation can quickly rise close to as high as €500/t by 2030, so that is as high as the cost of the product itself, in some cases now,” commented Abraham. “So, verifying your actual emissions, declaring them and then getting them approved by bodies that are already acknowledged by the EU is extremely important to ensure that companies can remain competitive in the European market.”

Author: Gabriela Farhangi 

kallanish.com

Processing industry sounds alarm
On April 14, EUROMETAL, the European Federation of steel distributors, traders and service centres, launched a “call to action to safeguard the European steel and metals industry,” already supported by more than 360 signatories across the entire steel and metals sector, including national federations, distributors and steelmakers.

During the press conference, attended by Fastmarkets, EUROMETAL outlined key demands to safeguard the industry, warning of accelerating deindustrialization.
• Trade defense: Introduction of tariffs and quotas on steel derivatives to align with US and Canadian measures and to counter unfair imports.
• Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) expansion: A similar move for CBAM – extension of the mechanism to downstream products to prevent carbon leakage and relocation.
• ”Made in EU” rules: Priority for EU-produced goods in public procurement and funding, to support domestic industry.
• Cost relief: Reduction of industrial power prices to 5 cents per kWh, revision of the EU’s Emissions Trading System rules, and cuts to the regulatory burden.

The need to act quickly was highlighted by Alexander Julius, president of EUROMETAL; Marcus Fix, managing director of service centre DM-Stahl; Heino Buddenberg, chief executive officer of Waelzholz, a global manufacturer of high-quality cold-rolled steel strip and shaped wire; and Georgios Giovanakis, chief sales officer at steelmaker Thyssenkrupp.

They said that a “Trumpish” approach should be used, to include steel derivatives in the scope of a new trade regime from July 1.

“Europe is at risk of losing steel processing and steel-based manufacturing,” Julius said. “This will put Europe into new dependencies on critical components, weakening its economic resilience further.”

Stakeholders argued that, in an increasingly volatile geopolitical environment, the EU’s regulatory pace was struggling to keep up with the more rapid, interventionist approaches seen in other major economies, particularly the US.

“We’re in the first line after steel manufacturing, producing precision sheet in Germany, Brazil and China, and we see that Europe is more or less getting out of the business, because our customer base is melting like butter in the sun,” Buddenberg said.

“Europe started with a CBAM mechanism and with a safeguards mechanism to protect the first line of the value chain,” he added, “but that just increases the speed of diminishing the manufacturing industry as their competitive point.

“The protection mechanism generates inflation at this first level… It’s very easy to import 100% Chinese-made motors and converters, and components that are totally outside any protection [measures], and that will lead to all the major OEMs [original equipment manufacturers] purchasing Chinese equipment because of market pressure,” he said.

Panel event participants agreed that the entire steel and metals value chain should be protected, otherwise it would “break at the weakest part.” In other words, there was little value in protecting an industry that would end up without customers.

Therefore, enabling faster policy responses and reducing the administrative burden on industry would be key in the safeguarding of the industry.

The European Commission was considering a major expansion of CBAM, but the newly covered sectors would be included only from January 1, 2028, Fastmarkets understands, subject to final adoption of the addition.

The year 2028 was considered “too late” and panellists once again warned about the leakage of high-value-added production outside the over-regulated European market.

EUROMETAL called on national and European policymakers to recognize the urgency of the situation and to take the necessary steps to secure the future of the European steel and metals industry.

European steel market pauses
Flat steel
Despite earlier expectations of a gradual price rebound during the time of the fair, trading remained quiet.

“The market is in a holding pattern and waiting for clarity on import quotas,” a buyer in Germany said.

In late March and early April, flat steel producers indicated preliminary offers for July-delivery hot-rolled coil in Northern Europe around €750-780 ($885-920) per tonne ex-works.

But buyer sources confirmed during the fair that such prices were still “wishful thinking” despite import constraints and production issues at some European suppliers.

“There is no shortage [of HRC], and a lot of import material was booked early to secure availability ahead of the new trade regime,” a second buyer said. “The level of stock across the entire supply chain is quite high.”

A large European steelmaker sold a significant tonnage of HRC, cold-rolled coil and hot-dipped galvanized coil for second-quarter delivery to several steel service centers (SSCs). The total volume was about 50,000 tonnes, with HRC accounting for about half of that.

The HRC price was reported around €680 per tonne ex-works, CRC at €790 per tonne ex-works and HDG at €800 per tonne ex-works.

Trade sources said that SSCs were looking to replace flat steel volumes due to technical issues at a Benelux-based integrated mill, which has been unable to deliver some orders.

Achievable prices for HRC were indicated at €700-720 per tonne ex-works during the fair – still far below mills’ target levels.

Fastmarkets’ daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe, was €709.48 ($836.71) per tonne on April 16, down by €9.48 per tonne from €718.96 per tonne on April 15.

The index was also down by €10.52 per tonne week on week but up by €3.85 per tonne month on month.

Market participants told Fastmarkets that buyers were mostly holding back, awaiting more clarity on country-specific quota allocations before committing to purchases.

Earlier this week, the European Council and European Parliament reached a provisional agreement on a new trade regime. A new tariff-rate quota (TRQ) system was set to replace the existing steel safeguard measures starting from July 1.

This will cut the overall volume of steel import quotas by approximately 47% compared with the 2024 safeguard quotas (18.3 million tonnes of import volumes per year), and will increase the out-of-quota duty to 50% from the current 25%.

Country-specific TRQ volumes for the new trade regime were expected to be revealed in late April or early May, market sources said.

Several insiders told Fastmarkets that they expected leading European suppliers to come back with firm offers for third-quarter delivery coil once the country-specific TRQ volumes were revealed.

“Demand will not recover substantially this year,” a steel service centre told Fastmarkets. “All this push for higher prices is driven by trade defense measures.”

Long steel
Meanwhile, long steel producers were also pushing for substantial price rises across Europe amid rising costs and tightening import activity, but regional acceptance was uneven.

Seasonal improvement in construction activity was providing support to European long steel producers. Market participants from Germany and Italy reported notably better demand compared with the winter months, but in France and Poland the demand was still said to leave much to be desired.

The fact that construction planning is more long-term than in the automotive sector also makes long steel market less exposed to unstable geopolitical situations compared with flat steel, which is widely used in the automotive industry.

Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, delivered Northern Europe, was €665-680 per tonne on April 15, up from €655-665 per tonne on April 8.

In Northern Europe, rebar offers reached €700 per tonne delivered versus €680 per tonne delivered last week, but saw only limited acceptance.

According to recent data, only buyers in Germany partially accepted the new price, while in France and Austria it was considered too high.

Italian suppliers also announced higher offers at €710-720 per tonne ex-works for the North of the country and €740-750 per tonne ex-works for the South.

These higher prices, however, have not been achieved in deals, with customers postponing the booking of new volumes while seeking more clarity on the situation.

As a result, Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, exw Italy, widened upward slightly to €670-710 per tonne ex-works on April 15, compared with €670-700 per tonne on April 8, reflecting tradeable values reported by industry sources.

Another supportive factor came from the policy side, where tighter trade controls were reinforcing the upward pressure on domestic prices.

On April 10, the European Commission reinforced steel safeguarding measures on steel rebar and merchant bar, closing a loophole that allowed circumvention.

It had found that importers were exploiting a loophole in the steel safeguard system by slightly tweaking the chemical composition of rebar so it could be declared under a different product category (CN code 7228 30 69 ) that had more available quota, which allowed shipments to bypass the stricter limits meant for rebar.

The Commission did not change the quotas themselves but instead introduced more precise product classification codes (TARIC codes) to clearly separate rebar from similar products, effectively shutting down this workaround and forcing those imports back under the correct, tighter quota regime, restoring the intended protection for EU producers.

Notably, codes 7228 30 69 11 (ribbed or deformed reinforcing steel) and 7228 30 69 99 (other) were added.

The regulation came into force on April 10 this year and will apply to the new safeguard regime starting on July 1.