Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) in Europe have been largely stable over the past seven days due to weak market activity, market sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday July 3.
Buying activity has been steady due to limited demand from end-users, sufficient stocks held by buyers, and an unclear price trend."The market is slow, because buyers mainly have enough material in stock and there is no clarity on how the prices are going to change," a European trader said. "And generally, slow demand among end-users remains the main problem [affecting the] European steel industry."Domestic pricesFastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic HRC in Northern Europe was ?,?480-495 ($542-558) per tonne ex-works on July 3, compared with ?,?485-495 per tonne ex-works a week earlier. This reflected transactions and "workable" prices heard in the market.And Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic HRC in Southern Europe was ?,?470-485 per tonne ex-works on July 3, compared with ?,?470-490 per tonne ex-works last week. The assessment represented offers heard in the market.Demand for HRC in Europe remains slow and is unlikely to change significantly, according...