In the first seven months of the current year, European stainless crude steel production decreased by five percent year on year to 4.4 million metric tons, according to the Stainless Steel Report October 2015 issued by Germany-based service center Damstahl.
Meanwhile, demand in the German stainless steel market was stable in September, but due to constantly declining alloy surcharges and raw material prices the downward pressure on margins remains. Despite a wait-and-see mentality of market participants caused by the downward movement of nickel prices and alloy surcharges, the situation in the Dutch stainless steel market is still improving slightly. The Dutch export market shows signs of a positive development, and further growth is expected to come in 2016.
According to the Damstahl report, although order books in the Danish stainless steel industry remain thin, demand was stable and new orders were placed at a steady pace. Nevertheless the industry is facing the problem of falling stainless surcharges and raw material prices, causing uncertainty among market participants.