European market eases further, but turning point approaches

摘要

European finished steel prices have continued to weaken over the past month, especially for flat products. However, with inventories at low levels, end-use activity picking up and import competition easing, mills are set to announce price rises for flat products in the near future. We believe that conditions in the flat products market are favourable for price rises to be realised for material for delivery in 2014 Q1. For long products too, we expect prices to improve in the coming weeks, especially as scrap costs are set to rise.