Category: Latest Updates

Conditions in the Romanian flat steel spot market have remained largely unchanged this week, as demand has continued to move at relatively modest levels and trading activity has shown little variation compared to previous weeks.

Market participants indicate that business has continued to be driven mainly by regular purchasing requirements, while overall transaction volumes have remained below expectations. Against this backdrop, suppliers have generally maintained their existing price levels, resulting in stable spot market prices week on week.

In the domestic spot market, HRS prices have remained stable at €780-790/mt ex-warehouse, while CRS prices have also remained unchanged week on week, at €880-900/mt ex-warehouse.

Meanwhile, market participants continue to monitor developments at Liberty Galati, the sole flat steel producer in Romania, ahead of the second asset sale procedure scheduled for June 19. According to local media reports, the producer has started preparations to regain its CE marking certification, which is required for supplying steel products within the EU market and is considered an important step towards the potential resumption of production activities at the plant.

Import activity has remained limited this week, with no fresh deals reported in the market. Market sources indicate that Romanian buyers have largely stayed on the sidelines following purchases concluded in recent weeks, while the persistently slow pace of local demand has further reduced the need for additional bookings. The Ukrainian supplier has maintained stable offer levels, with HRS still reported at €760-770/mt CPT Romania and CRS at €850-860/mt CPT Romania. Meanwhile, the Serbian origin HRS offer has been heard at around €885/mt CPT Romania, compared to approximately €800/mt CPT reported previously. Turkish suppliers have, meanwhile, slightly reduced their HRC offers to €555-580/mt CFR Romania, compared to €565-580/mt CFR heard last week. Nevertheless, buying interest in imported material has remained limited, with safeguard quota restrictions and CBAM-related costs continuing to affect purchasing decisions.

The trade in the European CRC and galvanized steel market has been rather quiet lately with the prices remaining relatively stable for several weeks now.

The buyers are reported to be cautious about piling up excessive stocks, while the mills, feeling the low activity on the import side due to unclear quota issue and a potential uptrend in the HRC segment for August and September, have started to show slight resistance to the lowest bids. As mentioned, demand as well as the number of import offers for CRC and HDG in Europe have been scarce lately.

In the domestic EU market, the CRC prices have settled at €770-810/mt ex-works, stable over the past two weeks. The workable price levels, according to sources, have been at €770-785/mt ex-works, while some mills have been insisting on not going below €795/mt ex-works, especially in the southern part of Europe. In the import segment, the number of offers has been very limited due buyers’ fears. Sources have reported indications for ex-India CRC at €790/mt DDP and $785-790/mt CFR, while ex-Ukraine material has been offered at €780-790/mt CPT to eastern Europe. CRC from South Korea was at the latest reported at €830-840/mt DDP.

Local HDG prices have also been mainly stable across Europe at €780-800/mt ex-works with the demand reportedly at moderate levels. Similarly to the CRC segment, some of the mills have started to resist going below €800/mt ex-works in negotiations amid the potential price rise for flats expected for August-September. The number of import offers for HDG has also been limited this week due to low buyers’ interest. Ex-Japan Z140 material was available at €910/mt CFR, sources reported. Offers for galvanized material from Ukraine have been reported at €860/mt DDP eastern Europe.

The European longs market has remained broadly stable this week, in the absence of clear price-driving factors.

In general, rebar supply continues to exceed wire rod supply, though demand for both products remains weak due to the slowdown in downstream markets ahead of the summer season, as well as ongoing geopolitical and regulatory uncertainty.

Official product-specific quotas under the new EU safeguard measures, which will come into force on July 1, were published at the beginning of this week, although country-specific quotas have not yet been disclosed. This development has generated dissatisfaction among market participants, who were expecting greater clarity with less than two weeks remaining before implementation.

As a result, European longs markets are experiencing what one market source described as a “general and cross-segment price roll-over”.

In the Italian domestic market, rebar prices have continued to stand at €440-450/mt ex-works base (€700-710/mt ex-works including regular extras), in the face of very weak demand, while drawing quality wire rod prices have remained stable at the same levels reported last week of €695-710/mt delivered.

“Mills will fight hard to avoid lower prices, as they would rather ship material outside Europe where possible than reduce their [price] levels,” a source commented. Accordingly, export prices for both rebar and wire rod from Italy have also remained stable in the latest offers.

On the demand side, buyers continue to act cautiously, limiting purchases to immediate needs and avoiding stockpiling.

In Germany, prices for long products have also remained stable, supported by largely unchanged scrap costs and expectations of an improvement in electricity cost incidence following the introduction of new support schemes.

In the Polish domestic market, however, downward pressure has emerged, as delays in the implementation of ongoing government infrastructure projects are reducing demand. “We hope the situation will recover after the summer, also thanks to the new safeguard measures,” two different market sources stated.

According to available data, mills’ rebar offers have been heard at around €680/mt CPT, while actual deals have been concluded at approximately €670-675/mt CPT. Traders’ offers have also been reported as low as €650-660/mt CPT. As for wire rod, offers have been reported at around €690-710/mt CPT, with one source indicating a higher level of €725/mt CPT, although this has not been confirmed at the time of publication.

In the import segment, offer levels have remained stable or are slightly lower compared to the previous week, as the lack of clarity regarding import quotas has led to reduced interest in incoming material from non-EU countries.

Offers from Turkey have been reported at €550-560/mt CFR for rebar (down by €5/mt on the lower end week on week) and at €560-570/mt CFR for wire rod, stable week on week.

Offers from Egypt have been heard at €545-550/mt CFR for rebar, down by €5-15/mt week on week, while wire rod offers have been reported at €555-560/mt CFR, indicating the same decrease over the same period.

Lastly, offers from Algeria have been reported at around €550/mt CFR for rebar and €560/mt CFR for wire rod.

All import offers mentioned refer to July shipments and are mainly directed to European countries outside the EU.

€1 = PLN 4.25
€1 = $1.16

European steel heavy plate prices declined in the week to Thursday June 11, driven by weak demand and sufficient stocks, sources told Fastmarkets.

Southern Europe

Offers for steel base-grade plate were heard at €720-760 ($833-879) per tonne ex-works during the week, slightly lower than the latest tradable prices at €730-750 heard on June 4.

The range at €720-730 per tonne ex-works was linked to higher-volume deliveries for July-August, while offers at €740-760 per tonne ex-works were linked to smaller tonnages, sources said.

“Plate producers in Northern and Southern EU [are] searching for orders in the third quarter, as demand is continuously shrinking,” a trader source said on June 9, adding that this has caused declining prices in the range of €10-20 per tonne.

The same source said re-rollers in Southern Europe have faced “even more difficult times as demand also disappeared and slab prices are difficult to crack,” adding that there were still sufficient quantities in local “port stocks” at somewhat reasonable prices available.

Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel domestic plate 8-40mm, exw Southern Europe, was €720-740 per tonne on Thursday, down from €730-750 per tonne a week earlier.

One producer source indicated plate import prices into Southern Europe at €720-730 per tonne CFR, without any additional duties.

Higher offers were, meanwhile, heard at €740-775 per tonne CFR from Asia, including Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) costs, which were not considered in the assessment, covering base prices.

The highest import offer was heard at €780-800 per tonne DDP but was not included in the CFR assessment. All offer levels were not getting buying interest, market sources said.

Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel plate (8-40mm), import, cfr main port Southern Europe, was €700-750 per tonne on Thursday, unchanged since April 16.

Northern Europe

Offers for steel plate in Germany were heard at €790-850 per tonne ex-works, slightly lower than offers in the range of €800-850 per tonne ex-works on June 4.

Indications were reported at higher levels, reaching €830-880 per tonne ex-works, but the range at €840-880 per tonne ex-works was linked mainly to long-term contract prices, sources said, so it was not considered in the assessment.

“There is only minimum demand, in addition, the Middle East war keeps investors at the sideline,” a trader told Fastmarkets.

Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel domestic plate 8-40mm, exw Northern Europe, was €790-840 per tonne on Thursday, widening downward from €800-850 per tonne a week earlier.

An offer for plate imports was reported at €800 per tonne FCA Antwerp for S355-grade, including CBAM costs, but was not attracting any interest, sources said.

This offer was not considered in the assessment, as it was outside the specifications outlined in Fastmarkets’ methodology.

Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel plate (8-40mm), import, cfr main port Northern Europe, was €700-750 per tonne on Thursday, unchanged from April 16.

European demand for green flat steel was close to zero in the week to Thursday June 11, with buyers largely unwilling to pay premiums for low-emission material in the absence of regulatory pressure or government-led incentives.

Market participants said that in the current conditions, most customers have continued to prioritize cost over carbon footprint, leaving activity for green flat steel minimal and limiting mills’ ability to secure meaningful price differentials.

Fastmarkets defines green steel as material with combined Scope 1, 2 and 3 carbon emissions not exceeding 0.8 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of steel produced.

Suppliers seek a €150-200-per-tonne ($174-$231) premium for such material; however, buyers presently demonstrate clear reluctance to pay even a single euro.

As a result, Fastmarkets’ weekly assessment of the green steel domestic, flat-rolled, differential to HRC index, exw Northern Europe dropped to €0-150 per tonne on June 11, down from €100-200 per tonne on July 4.

The Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) must be extended to include steel-based manufactured products, but a big challenge is bringing this message home to policymakers in Brussels, said speakers at Kallanish Europe Steel Markets 2026 in Vienna.

For one thing, the steel industry in the minds of many is limited to the steelmaking industry, the mills, ignoring the ancillary industries in the longer value chain. The players further down the chain, fabricators and manufacturers of steel-based products, are mostly smaller companies and easily overlooked, said Alexander Julius, president of distributors association Eurometal.

The big steel mills under association Eurofer have traditionally had a good standing at the European Commission, so their pleas for trade measures have been heard, he noted. The political ties are even stronger with the automotive industry, which is delicate because carmakers “are the biggest beneficiaries” of parts made outside the European Union.

This is fatal for the mainly small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which are fragmented, but they supply material and jobs, which are massively under threat within the union. The SMEs “do not have offices in Brussels; they cannot sit on the laps of functionaries and have lunches with them,” Julius said.

His wording provoked reaction from the audience from a representative of Tata Steel, who stated that “lobbying is a lot of hard work, analytical work, and not just eating lunches”. Still, he conceded that “in the core, you are right”.

Julius further pointed out that not only jobs are at stake, but also European industrial independence, and national/continental security, if parts made in China dominate Europe. “Initially, they [Chinese suppliers] are pleasing us with low prices, and then they will be controlling us. And will the prices remain low? No,” Julius asserted.

“They are controlling us in defence; that means all the components which are necessary to build a drone. That means they are going to dictate how much we are getting at what price,” he added.

His argumentation was continued by Jiri Mravec, head of innovation & transformation at Trinecke Zelezarny. “We are not living in a peaceful world. Nobody wants to depend 100% on imports,” he clarified.

As long as there are loopholes downstream, importers will find room for circumvention. “I would not be naïve in this, I would make CBAM as strict as possible,” Mravec said. He used the example of railway products and bearings, which are both produced by his company. “That seems illogical not to be included [in CBAM] because it’s 100% steel, so I think it’s absolutely crucial that we close the downstream loophole.”

“If we in Europe decide to be a green island, we need to be an island for the whole value chain,” he added. “For the end customer, this means, yes, they have to accept a larger price tag.”

From the floor, M7 Metals founding partner Philip Edmonds agreed with the logic of extending CBAM downstream but warned against blaming CBAM for Europe’s industrial problems. He highlighted the example of a washing machine, pointing out that the CBAM cost on the steel weight would only raise the overall cost of the washing machine by a fraction. “No washing machine manufacturer in Europe is moving outside of Europe because of CBAM. They are moving because of the work culture in Europe,” Edmonds said.

“We should not forget this is the first year, so the free allowances or allocation adjustments for CBAM is 97.5% this year. That’s going to go down. And from 2030, this is going to go really fast,” SteelConsult International managing director Giles Callis countered from the panel.

 

Author: Christian Koehl

kallanish.com

The UK steel market remains largely opposed to the sweeping new trade quota system; despite expectations it would lend significant support to domestic price levels.

Speaking at the International Steel Trade Association networking event June 11, market participants criticized the proposed quotas that will come into force July 1 and remained skeptical that any changes would be made to the proposals prior to the commencement of the measures, despite additional pressure voiced by trade unions this week.

Other sources at the fair referred to UK steel producers’ systematic inability to either meet product demand or actually produce certain types of steel. For instance, hot-rolled coil over 2 meters wide is not domestically produced in the UK market, forcing consumers to look abroad for this material. However, despite not being produced domestically, it would still fall under the general category 1A quota for HRC.

The category 1 quota was significantly slashed by UK policymakers. For EU origin material, a revised annual quota was proposed of 68,226 metric tons from July 1, about a 90% decrease from quota levels under the current measures. For South Korea, a new country-specific quota was proposed, allocating just 3,258 mt per year. India will also have its own annual quota of 12,405 mt.

The ISTA organization has repeatedly called for the proposed safeguards, as part of the UK’s Steel Strategy, to be significantly altered, stating via LinkedIn that “importing steel once these measures are fully in place will be in practical terms, nearly impossible for many products,” and that “the duty risk of 50% will make pricing uncompetitive for the final end users.”

“I expect prices to increase regardless of demand,” said a service center source, at the event. “It will really tighten the market, and unless something changes, specific grades just won’t come through.”

The same source said that he expects the recent fire at Tata Steel’s Port Talbot site to have little impact on the UK’s finalized quota decision, and that only the supply of hot-rolled pickled and oiled material could be affected.

Platts, part of S&P Global Energy, assessed HRC [S275JR] in the UK at GBP 705/mt DDP West Midlands June 11, stable week over week, but up GBP190/mt since the start of the year.

Although broader attitudes towards demand remain largely negative through this period, market participants have cited that the market continues to hold regulatory-based support, with some stock building ahead of the quota start date.

“People have booked heavily for June,” one EU-based mil source said.

“I think service centers are out of the market for the time being, and their stock may take them into July or August,” the source added.

Author: Charles Thompson, Riley Waters 

spglobal.com

 

Eurofer has noted improvements made by EU ministers to the proposed reform of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), but warns loopholes remain that could weaken both Europe’s climate ambitions and industrial competitiveness.

Meeting today, the Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN), which gathers the EU27 Economy and Finance Ministers, adopted its position on the European Commission’s CBAM review proposal. The European Steel Association (EUROFER) noted several improvements, including stronger references to “melt and pour” rules and clearer recognition of the risk that producers outside Europe may circumvent the system through ‘resource shuffling’ practices.

Axel Eggert, EUROFER’s Director General, said. “The Council has taken a step in the right direction, but it will not be sufficient to prevent carbon leakage, as major loopholes remain on circumvention, downstream products and exports. If they are not closed, carbon emissions will shift, not fall.”

One of the biggest concerns for the steel sector is resource shuffling. This occurs when foreign producers send lower carbon steel to Europe while continuing to sell more carbon-intensive steel elsewhere. While the Council proposal better recognises this risk, it still relies largely on uncertain corrective measures rather than preventing it from happening in the first place.

The Council also proposes extending CBAM to around 200 additional steel-containing products. EUROFER welcomes this extension but warns this fails to provide a comprehensive and structural coverage to many steel-intensive goods, leaving parts of Europe’s manufacturing value chain exposed to imports that do not face comparable carbon costs.

EUROFER also regrets that Member States maintained the Commission’s proposal to include pre-consumer steel scrap as a CBAM precursor without first carrying out a dedicated impact assessment. The association warns this could create unintended consequences for scrap markets and Europe’s circular economy.

The Council also amended article 27a, which sets conditions for temporary removal of goods from the CBAM scope. Rather than relying on such an unpredictable “emergency brake” mechanism, a more effective approach would be to adjust the pace of the CBAM/free allocation transition.

Finally, the steel industry expressed concern that little progress has been made on a long-term solution for European exports. While CBAM applies to imports entering the EU market, European producers exporting abroad continue to face carbon costs that many international competitors do not.

The Romanian long steel spot market has remained largely stable this week, although the softer sentiment observed in recent weeks continues to weigh on trading activity.

Market participants indicate that demand remains limited, with buyers continuing to focus primarily on immediate requirements amid generally slow market conditions. The approaching summer holiday season has also contributed to a cautious atmosphere, restricting new purchasing activity and reducing overall market momentum. While most traders have kept their official prices unchanged, sources report that some traders remain open to discounts in spot transactions, particularly for serious buyers and larger tonnages, reflecting the ongoing difficulty in generating stronger sales volumes.

As a result, rebar spot prices in Romania have remained stable at €635-640/mt ex-warehouse, while wire rod prices are still reported at €685-690/mt ex-warehouse.

On the production side, Beltrame Group has continued to indicate rebar prices at around €640-650/mt ex-works, maintaining unchanged offer levels compared to the previous week.

Meanwhile, activity in the import market has remained slow this week, in line with the subdued conditions in the domestic market. Buyers have shown limited interest in new bookings, and no fresh import deals have been heard by the time of publication. Bulgarian rebar offers have been heard at around €650-665/mt CFR. On the other hand, Greek suppliers’ offers have remained stable, with rebar at €655-665/mt CFR and wire rod at €665-675/mt CFR. Meanwhile, on the non-EU side, offers from Egyptian suppliers have been heard at €545-555/mt CFR for rebar and €555-565/mt CFR for wire rod, compared to €545-550/mt CFR for rebar and €560-565/mt CFR for wire rod last week. Turkish suppliers have, meanwhile, slightly decreased their rebar offers to €530-545/mt CFR Romania, compared to €535-545/mt CFR heard last week, based on an exchange rate of €1 = $1.15 and estimated freight costs of €25-30/mt.

The Bulgarian longs market has faced further pressure this week, as sluggish demand and ongoing liquidity constraints have continued to weigh on market sentiments. Market participants report that buyers have remained cautious, focusing primarily on immediate requirements rather than larger-volume purchases amid challenging financing conditions.

Trading activity has therefore remained relatively limited, while weaker buying interest has resulted in lower price levels being observed across the market. At the same time, suppliers have been facing increasing pressure to secure orders, contributing to a more competitive market environment compared to previous weeks

“Demand remains limited and pricing can vary significantly depending on tonnage, destination and payment terms. For serious buyers, lower levels than the official market indications may still be achievable,” a trader told SteelOrbis.

In the local market, rebar prices have declined to around €625-635/mt CPT Bulgaria, compared to €630-640/mt CPT heard previously. Nevertheless, sources indicate that levels of €620-625/mt CPT have also been heard in the market recently, particularly from suppliers seeking to secure larger tonnages. Wire rod prices have, meanwhile, moved down to around €670-690/mt CPT, compared to €680-700/mt CPT reported a week earlier.

Despite the slow pace of domestic demand, Bulgarian buyers continue to monitor import opportunities, particularly as foreign suppliers seek to maintain their competitiveness in the market. Although no fresh import bookings have been reported so far this week, interest in imported material remains present. Turkish rebar offers are currently estimated at around $585-595/mt FOB. After accounting for freight costs of approximately €20-25/mt, these levels would translate to roughly €530-540/mt CFR Bulgaria, broadly unchanged from the levels heard a week earlier. Egyptian suppliers are, meanwhile, estimated to be offering rebar at around $595-600/mt FOB and wire rod at approximately $605-610/mt FOB. Based on prevailing freight rates of around €25-30/mt, these indications would correspond to approximately €540-550/mt CFR Bulgaria for rebar and €550-560/mt CFR Bulgaria for wire rod, compared to €535-550/mt CFR and €555-565/mt CFR, respectively, reported last week.

As for EU origin material, Italian rebar offers have remained at around €665/mt CPT Bulgaria. Similarly, Romanian origin rebar is still estimated at approximately €660-670/mt delivered Bulgaria, reflecting current domestic levels in Romania and transportation costs of roughly €30/mt. However, market participants indicate that workable levels around €20/mt lower may still be achievable in selected transactions, particularly for larger-volume purchases.