According to the Economic and Steel Market Outlook 2026-2027/Q2 2026 Report from the Economic Committee of the European Steel Association (EUROFER), EU steel imports declined sharply in the first quarter of 2026 following an exceptional surge in the final quarter of 2025, when imports reached an all-time high share of the EU steel market.
EUROFER stated that total steel imports into the EU fell by 23 percent year on year in the first quarter of 2026, after recording a 53 percent increase in the fourth quarter of 2025. In the same period, imports of finished steel products decreased by 17 percent, reflecting lower shipments of both flat and long steel products. Flat product imports were down by 17 percent, while long product imports fell by 19 percent and accounted for 21 percent of total finished steel imports.
According to EUROFER, imports had played a key role in meeting EU steel demand in 2025, with imported steel accounting for 30 percent of apparent steel consumption over the full year. In the fourth quarter alone, imports represented 37 percent of apparent steel consumption, compared to 29 percent in the third quarter, marking an exceptional all-time peak.
In the first quarter of 2026, the main sources of finished steel imports into the EU were Turkey, South Korea, China, India, Ukraine, Indonesia and Vietnam. The five largest exporting countries accounted for 54 percent of total EU finished steel imports in the given period.
Turkey remained the largest source of EU finished steel imports, with a share of 17.2 percent, followed by South Korea with 11.5 percent, China with 9.9 percent, India with 8.9 percent, Ukraine with 7.3 percent and Indonesia with 6.4 percent.
Import trends varied significantly by country in the first quarter. EU finished steel imports increased from Indonesia by 19 percent and from India by 12 percent, while imports from Turkey declined by 13 percent. Shipments from China decreased by two percent, while imports from Ukraine, South Korea and Vietnam fell by 17 percent, 31 percent and 49 percent, respectively.
EUROFER indicated that, despite the correction in import volumes in early 2026, the record import share reached at the end of 2025 underlined the EU steel market’s increasing reliance on foreign steel, while domestic producers continued to face weak underlying market conditions and subdued capacity utilization.