Hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices in Northern Europe increased on Wednesday October 28 amid tight availability for the remainder of the year, while Italian prices edged lower as subdued demand and operational difficulties at domestic mills limited market activity, sources told Fastmarkets.
In Northern Europe, bids were reported at €730-745 ($814-831) per tonne ex-works on Wednesday October 28.
A seller source reported deals for December-delivery material at €740-755 per tonne ex-works. Another mill was heard offering HRC at €800 per tonne delivered, equivalent to €780-785 per tonne ex-works, although market sources described this level as unworkable under current market conditions.
Meanwhile, a buyer source said that major producers were offering material at €760 per tonne ex-works.
The previous day, domestic mills across the region were reported to be largely sold out of 2026 production, with producers focusing on January 2027 delivery. Availability for the remainder of the year was also being constrained by planned mill maintenance in December, which will reduce the number of working days.
Despite weak demand, market participants said that domestic mills’ order books had been supported by the safeguard measures introduced in July. The reduction in import quotas had reportedly cut import volumes by 10-20%, increasing buyers’ reliance on domestic supply, a buyer source from Northern Europe told Fastmarkets.
Fastmarkets’ daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe was calculated at €751.25 per tonne on Wednesday October 28, up by €2.86 per tonne from €748.39 per tonne on Tuesday October 27.
The index increased by €4.58 per tonne week on week and by €6.25 per tonne month on month.
In Italy, domestic HRC market activity remained subdued despite limited local availability, with major producers continuing to face operational difficulties.
The former Ilva steelworks in Taranto, operated by Acciaierie d’Italia under extraordinary administration, remained a key source of uncertainty for domestic supply. Its blast furnaces and coke ovens were idled in preheating mode until at least December 15, pending a Court of Cassation decision on whether operations could resume. Meanwhile, the company had opened a redundancy procedure covering 40 of its 51 permanent executives, and binding bids from prospective buyers were due by November 8.
Metinvest’s Italian re-rolling operations also remained affected by equipment breakdowns at Ferriera Valsider in August, leaving the mill temporarily absent from the HRC spot market. As a result, Arvedi remained the main active domestic supplier of HRC, according to sources.
Workable levels were reported at €730-740 per tonne ex-works, although negotiations remained limited. Mills were offering their remaining 2026 volumes at around €740 per tonne ex-works, while buyers indicated bids of no more than €750 per tonne delivered, equivalent to approximately €730-735 per tonne ex-works.
For January 2027 rolling, offers for HRC were heard at €760-780 per tonne delivered (€740-765 per tonne exw), with some initial bookings reported at these levels. However, a source from a producer said that buyers remained reluctant to accept prices above €750 ex-works for early next year, citing sluggish end-user demand.
Northern European mills were also stepping up sales activity in Italy amid limited domestic availability and reduced import volumes, with delivered offers reported at €780-790 per tonne.
Fastmarkets’ daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Italy was calculated at €741.63 per tonne on Wednesday October 28, down by €2.87 per tonne day on day from €744.50 per tonne on Tuesday October 27.
The index fell by €0.83 per tonne week on week but increased by €0.38 per tonne month on month.
In Central Europe, the most recent indications of tradeable levels continued coming within the range of €745-760 per tonne ex-works earlier this week.
For this reason, Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel hot-rolled coil domestic, Central Europe remained within the range of €745-760 per tonne ex-works on October 28, unchanged week on week.
A buyer in Poland said that, since material previously booked from Ukraine had failed to arrive, buyers were seeking replacement volumes in the local market.
The market leader continued targeting €790-800 per tonne CPT (equivalent to €770-785 per tonne ex-works) for hot-rolled coil in the region, sources said.
In Spain, ArcelorMittal was targeting levels similar to those heard in Central Europe.
One buyer said that for large customers a discount of around €20 per tonne could be applied and estimated tradeable levels within the range of €770-780 per tonne delivered or €750-765 per tonne ex-works.
Another buyer source said he would not be surprised if the seller achieved €800 per tonne ex-works soon, and claimed that “material shortages are starting in Spain as imports can only be cleared in small parts”.
Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel hot-rolled coil domestic, exw Spain was €750-770 per tonne on October 28, widening upward from €750-760 per tonne on October 21.
