European Steel Plate Imports Increased Year-on-year in The First Seven Months Of 2024

In the second quarter of 2024, real steel consumption in Europe rose by 5% year-on-year and is expected to fall by another 3% for the whole of 2024 but recover in 2025. Demand was not as high as expected in 2024, as geopolitical situation, inflation, and market uncertainty, combined with energy prices, have kept European steel mills' inventories at historically high levels.

From the supply side, Europe's total steel imports (including semi-finished products) in the second quarter of 2024, compared with last year's year-on-year decline of 2%, compared with the previous quarter rose 12%, of which plate imports fell 7%, while the first quarter of a substantial increase of 22%, long products imports grew 4%, but fell 15% in the previous quarter. From the point of view of importing countries, 2024 the first seven months of Europe's main importing countries and regions, in descending order for India (15%), Turkey (14%), South Korea (11%), Vietnam (9.4%), Taiwan (9%), mainland China (7%), Ukraine and Japan. Steel imports from Turkey grew significantly, up 99% year-on-year, India rose 27%, and Vietnam rose 20%, but imports from mainland China fell 23%, Japan fell 20%, South Korea fell 7%, and Taiwan fell 1%.

From the variety point of view, the EU imports of the plate in the first seven months rose 9% year-on-year, long steel did not have any change (accounting for 20% of the total finished product imports), and overall, finished product imports rose 7% year-on-year. Among the plate products, hot-rolled wide steel strips rose 5% year-on-year. Wire rod products in the hot rolled and threaded imports rose 13 percent year-on-year for the line and 20 percent.