Spain saw apparent steel consumption (ASC) decrease 1.2% year-on-year in 2025, but a rebound is forecast this year, says Alfonso Hidalgo de Calcerrada, head of the economic studies department of Spanish steelmakers’ association Unesid.
During the last quarter of last year, demand climbed ahead of the implementation of CBAM. “The consumption growth is reflected in the latest transactions in Q4 2025, where importers increased their purchases before this complex mechanism came into force,” Hidalgo observed during the EUROMETAL Steel Net Forum Iberia in Santander last week attended by Kallansh. “At the beginning of this year [January-February] volumes declined.”
Spain’s 2025 ASC reached 3.31 million tonnes, making it one of the few leading EU countries to record a decline versus 2024. By comparison, ASC in Italy was 4.6% higher y-o-y, Germany’s grew by 0.4%, whilst France saw an increase of 0.2%.
Spanish steel consumption in Q4 alone accounted for 1.72mt. This volume was 16.4% higher than 1mt in Q3 2025 and up 9% y-o-y.
“The increase was most pronounced in the consumption of flat steel, which reached 736,000 tonnes in Q4 2025, whilst that of long products stood at 413,000t. Both volumes declined with the entry of the CBAM, with data for the first two months of 2026 showing a sequential fall of 6% and 4%, respectively, for flats and longs,” the economist revealed.
Imports from third countries remained a major cause for concern throughout 2025. However, the implementation of CBAM and the forthcoming introduction of the EU’s new trade defence measure will provide some relief for European industry and bring greater certainty for demand from this year onwards, concluded Hidalgo.
