Crude steel output at German mills increased year-on-year for the second consecutive month in February.
In its latest monthly production report, steel federation WV Stahl assumed a tone more positive than seen for a long time, with 2023 the weakest production year since the financial crisis in 2009. In its February report, it speaks of “gentle signals of stabilisation”, with crude steel production 4.4% higher than in February 2023, totalling 3.1 million tonnes.
January saw a similar y-o-y increase. However, WV Stahl chief economist Martin Theuringer warned then that “we cannot call this a change of trend”. He noted that high power costs are tempering the electric arc furnace route, especially, which in January still saw production 12% below output in January 2021.
In the first two months, crude steel output came to 6.2mt, an increase by 4.6% y-o-y. The increase occurred at EAF mills as well as oxygen-route mills. Rolled products output rose by 7.6% to 5.6mt, Kallanish reads.
Christian Koehl Germany
