Spanish steel demand in 2022 down 4% to 12.4 million mt

Spanish demand in 2022 for steel products fell 4% to 12.4 million mt, industry association Unesid said April 18, with the year marked by slowing production amid spiking energy prices.

Demand weakened notably in the fourth quarter with a decline of 14% year on year, the group said, with the start of 2023 showing a similar tendency, Unesid president Andres Barcelo said.

“The year has started along the same lines as 2022 finished,” Barcelo said. “The forecasts are not optimistic, and uncertainty surrounds industrial activity.”

Crude steel production was 11.5 million mt in the full year, down 19% as imports from outside the EU ousted domestic material.

In terms of scrap recycling, Spain saw volume drop 20%, more or less in line with the decline in production, to 8.9 million mt — below the level of pandemic-hit 2020. The share of recycled material in crude steel production was 77%.

“Production effectively fell to the same level as 2020 when COVID 19 paralyzed industrial activity,” Barcelo said. “The price of electricity and gas caused this decline, and particularly harmed exports, which in Spain fell even more than sales.”

Spanish deliveries of steel products to the market fell 13% in 2022 to 11.9 million mt due to an 18% decline in exports, including a 28% decline for non-EU exports. A total 6.4 million mt of products was delivered to the Spanish market, down 9% year on year.

During the year, imports from outside the EU covered 31% of EU demand, the highest quota on record, Unesid noted.

Spain imported a 15-year high 4.2 million mt of steel products from outside the EU, or 43% of its total. Overall imports were down 3% at 9.8 million mt.

Exports were 8.1 million mt, down 14%, leaving a volume deficit of 1.7 million mt, nearly triple the 2021 deficit.

Author Gianluca Baratti,