German steel product sales and stocks dip amid manufacturing slowdown
Steel product sales in the German distribution and stockholding system totaled 776,079 mt in July, down 0.7% from a year earlier, German steel stockholders’ association BDS reported Aug. 22
The July total was down 6.5% from the 829,612 mt sold in June, as the slowdown in German industrial production and weak demand weighed on the market.
Germany’s industrial output fell for a second consecutive month in June, with a drop of 1.5% on a monthly basis, worsening from the previous month’s dip of 0.1%.
Within the overall sales figures, monthly sales of long products totaled 244,917 mt, down 6.4% year on year and little changed from the prior month. Monthly sales of flat products were reported at 476,850 mt, up 3.9% on the year but down 9.1% on the month.
Weaker demand from stockists was also evident in the monthly steel inventories which fell 11.8% on the year to 2 million mt. Stocks of long products were reported at 684,005 mt, down 14.3% on the year and 2.1% lower on the month, while those of flat products were reported at 1.29 million mt, down 10.7% on the year but up 5.9% on the month.
Platts, part of S&P Global Commodity Insights, assessed domestic hot-rolled coil prices in Northern Europe at Eur635/mt ex-works Ruhr Aug. 21, down 35% since March 30.
Author: Euan Sadden
European Flat SSC Distribution have increased Shipments during 2015
In 2015, shipments of strip mill products to steel end use segments by European flat steel service centers did increase by +6 % when compared with 2014.
Comparing December 2015 with December 2014, shipments of strip mill products have been growing by +8 %, year-on-year.
On the other hand, shipments by European multi-product & proximity steel stockholding distribution noted a rather negative run in December 2015.
December 2015 shipments decreased by – 16 % when compared to December 2014.
For the total year of 2015, sales of the segment Multi-product & Proximity Distribution business registered a negative score. In 2015, shipments by this distribution segment were lower by -3 % when compared to 2014.
Commenting the developments in EU flat SSC segment, Cesare Vigano, EUROMETAL Vice-president, indicated that EU SSC shipments were supported by positive business in automotive and related industries and that in 2015 the SSC market in Southern Europe showed signs of recovery in shipments, unfortunately with economic KPI’s still on unsatisfactory level, due to permanent imbalance between offer and real consumption, calling for further progress in market consolidation process.
Mikael Nyquist, EUROMETAL Vice-president, outlined that European Multi-Product & Proximity Steel Stockholding Distribution was suffering in 2015 and that in a longer term further restructuring and consolidation will be looming in order to balance capacities also in this steel distribution segment with the perspectives of the market for multi-products & proximity steel distribution.
CONTACT : kirps@eurometal.net