Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) in the EU have been stable over the past week while steelmakers sought higher prices and buyers resisted any rises, market sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday May 29.
Some European flat steel producers, including ArcelorMittal and Marcegaglia, have increased their official offers of HRC while others have stopped giving additional discounts to buyers."If mills continue to apply similar pricing policies and will not give discounts, prices will remain stable or even start to rise," a German trader said.The main reason behind the decline in domestic coil prices so far in the second quarter of this year has been slow demand, and the situation has not improved, according...