In Northern Europe, HRC with July lead times was heard offered at €620-650 ($709-743) per tonne ex-works or delivered from integrated mills.
A re-roller in the region was heard offering coil at €600 per tonne ex-works.
Italy-origin coil was offered to Germany at €630 per tonne delivered, with bids for such material reported at €610 per tonne delivered.
Buyers’ estimations of tradable prices were heard at €590-620 per tonne ex-works on Friday.
Earlier this week, industry sources reported that one major supplier in the region concluded a transaction at approximately €600 per tonne delivered Germany, equating to around €585-590 per tonne ex-works. But another source indicated that the deal was finalized at €595 per tonne delivered.
Throughout the first week of June, trading was muted.
Sluggish end-user demand, lack of buyer confidence and competitive import offers put pressure on domestic prices in Europe, while the approaching holiday season left little hope for a short-term price rebound, sources said.
Fastmarkets’ calculation of the daily steel HRC index, domestic, exw Northern Europe was €606.38 per tonne on Friday, down by €1.12 per tonne from €607.50 per tonne on Thursday June 5.
The index slipped by €21.12 per tonne since Monday June 2.
The Northern European index was also down by €22.37 per tonne week on week and by €48.60 per tonne month on month.
Meanwhile, in Central Europe, buyers estimated the market at €600-630 per tonne ex-works during the assessment week.
Offers from integrated mills were heard at 630-640 per tonne ex-works.
One mill in the region was heard to have limited spot availability until August after contracting major volumes to Germany.
A deal was also heard at €600 per tonne ex-works in the region, but it was not widely confirmed by industry sources.
As a result, Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel hot-rolled coil domestic, exw Central Europe was €600-630 per tonne on June 4, down from €630-640 per tonne in the previous week.
Meanwhile, in Italy, Fastmarkets’ daily steel HRC index, domestic, exw Italy was calculated at €590 per tonne on Friday, stable day on day.
The Italian index was down by €8.75 per tonne week on week and by €25 per tonne month on month.
The Italian market has also been quiet.
Offers from domestic suppliers were in the range of €590-610 per tonne delivered (€580-600 per tonne ex-works). An integrated supplier was offering at the higher end of the range.
Buyers estimated tradable prices at €580-590 per tonne ex-works, hinting at further downward potential due to limited demand.
Some re-rollers were still offering June lead times, while integrated mills offered July delivery, underscoring the difficulty that suppliers are facing in filling order books.
Imports have added further downward pressure.
Indonesian HRC was heard offered at €490-500 per tonne CFR to Italy by midweek, down from €520 per tonne CFR at the end of May.
Indian material was offered around €535-540 per tonne CFR, while Turkish coil was available at €530-545 per tonne CFR duty paid.
Despite attractive prices, buyers showed limited interest in imported material, with some reportedly testing the quality of recent arrivals before committing to new bookings.
Safeguards-related risks were also cooling buying interest for overseas coil, Fastmarkets heard.
Market participants expressed broader concerns about the structural demand weakness in Europe, citing poor fundamentals in downstream sectors, such as automotive and construction. The looming introduction of US tariffs and the upcoming implementation of the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) also added to the prevailing uncertainty.
“There’s no light at the end of the tunnel,” one German buyer said.
With a seasonal summer slowdown approaching and no significant demand recovery in sight, most market participants expect the downtrend to persist into the coming weeks, keeping both domestic and import prices under sustained pressure.
