Sales by German steel distributors decline in 2023

The average monthly sales volume of Germany’s stockholding steel distributors last year was 786,000 tonnes, roughly 5% below the monthly average of the preceding year 2022, which had achieved 826,000t.

Contrary to the preceding year, 2023 did not see a single month with sold tonnage above 1 million tonnes. That million-tonne level was attained in March 2022. March was the best-selling month of 2023, with 994,000t. December was the lowest-selling month with 465,000t, 13% below the figure of December 2022, Kallanish learns from statistics compiled by German steel stockholders federation BDS.

The total volume of finished steel products sold was 9.43mt in 2022, 5% less than in 2022. Flat products account for roughly 60% of the sales, long products were 30%, with some 10% taken by “miscellaneous products” such as wire rod.

The average monthly inventories in 2022 were 1.96mt, down appoximately 6% from 2022. The split was 1.22mt of flat products, 607,000t of long products and 41,700t of miscellaneous products. At the end of the year, the inventories stood at 1.85mt, compared with 1.95mt a year earlier.

Christian Koehl Germany

kallanish.com