In the January-August period this year, Italy's steel imports from non-European Union (EU) countries totaled 5.587 million metric tons, down 31.1 percent, while its steel exports to non-EU destinations amounted to 2.450 million metric tons, down 16.2 percent, both year on year, as per the data issued by the Italian steel producers association Federacciai. In both cases, the year-on-year decrease was lower compared to that recorded in the January-July period this year, reflecting an improvement in August.
In particular, in the given period imports of long products from non-EU countries decreased by 26.8 percent year on year. Wire rod imports were down 18.1 percent year on year to 127,000 mt, while bar imports decreased by 30.9 percent year on year to 94,000 mt.
Italy’s flat steel imports from non-EU countries in the same period declined by 30.3 percent year on year. Among the most imported flat steel products from non-EU countries in the given period were coils (1,659,000 mt, down 34.1 percent), cold rolled plate (483,000 mt, down 21.6 percent), and hot dip galvanized plate (270,000 mt, down 57.3 percent, all year on year).
Concerning Italian exports to non-EU countries in the first eight months this year, long product exports decreased by 15.6 percent, while flat product exports decreased by 2.2 percent, both year on year. In particular, rebar exports moved down by 24.9 percent to 265,000 mt, wire rod exports declined by 11.1 percent to 224,000 mt, while rail exports were up 181 percent to 59,000 mt, all year on year. Furthermore, coil exports decreased by 18.3 percent to 296,000 mt, while hot rolled plate exports increased by 36.9 percent to 193,000 mt, year on year.
Lastly, in the January-August period this year, Italian seamless pipe exports to non-EU countries totaled 215,000 mt, while Italian welded pipe exports came to 230,000 mt, respectively decreasing by 22.7 percent and by 26.5 percent year on year.
The details are presented in the following table, with units of measurement in thousand metric tons.
Products |
Imports non-EU |
Exports non-EU |
Balance |
|||||
Jan-Aug 19 |
Jan-Aug 20 |
Y-o-y change (%) |
Jan-Aug 19 |
Jan-Aug 20 |
Y-o-y change (%) |
Jan-Aug 19 |
Jan-Aug 20 |
|
Ingots and semi-finished products |
3,067 |
2,035 |
-33.6 |
259 |
116 |
-55.2 |
-2,808 |
-1,919 |
Long products |
325 |
238 |
-26.8 |
808 |
682 |
-15.6 |
483 |
444 |
Flat products |
4,407 |
3,071 |
-30.3 |
816 |
798 |
-2.2 |
-3,591 |
-2,273 |
1st manufacturing products (*) |
254 |
196 |
-22.8 |
924 |
755 |
-18.3 |
670 |
559 |
2nd manufacturing products (**) |
55 |
47 |
-14.5 |
117 |
99 |
-15.4 |
62 |
52 |
Total |
8,108 |
5,587 |
-31.1 |
2,924 |
2,450 |
-16.2 |
-5,184 |
-3,137 |
(*) Seamless pipes, welded pipes, forged bars, cold drawn sections and bars, drawn wire, cold rolled strips, welded sections, drawn wire.
(**) Flanges, pipe fittings, mining sections, diamond plates, pig iron powder