European hot rolled coil (HRC) prices have remained largely stable over the past week, with workable levels in both northern and southern Europe showing little change despite continued pressure from competitive import offers. Market activity has remained relatively subdued, as buyers have largely refrained from major purchases amid sufficient inventories and weak end-user demand. At the same time, attention has increasingly shifted toward trade policy developments after the European Parliament approved new steel protection measures that will significantly reduce duty-free import quotas and raise out-of-quota duties from July 2026, adding further uncertainty to the outlook for imported HRC and potentially strengthening the position of domestic mills in the longer term.
In northern Europe, mills’ official offers have been reported at around €700-710/mt ex-works mainly for July delivery, compared to target offers of €705-715/mt ex-works reported last week. Tradable prices, however, have remained stable at €680-690/mt ex-works.
In Italy, official HRC offers from mills have been estimated at €690-705/mt ex-works for June-July delivery, the same as last week. According to sources, tradable prices in the Italian market have now settled at €670-685/mt ex-works, remaining stable compared to last week. Besides, offers in Spain have been reported at around €710-720/mt delivered.
In the import segment, activity has remained limited, though lower-priced offers have continued to put pressure on the local market. While some ex-Asia import offers on DDP basis are still reported at around €650/mt DDP southern Europe, more offers from traders have been reported at higher levels or at around €660-700/mt DDP. In particular, offers for ex-Thailand HRC have been voiced at €660/mt DDP, while prices for ex-Vietnam coils have settled at €700/mt DDP. Offers for ex-Turkey HRC have been estimated at €680-690/mt DDP southern Europe, while the highest prices have been voiced for ex-Japan HRC at €700-730/mt DDP through traders in Spain. “We heard a deal for ex-Turkey HRC was signed at around €675-685/mt DDP, while suppliers have already been collecting inquiries for October 1 at around €675-680/mt CFR, which means around €680/mt DDP plus all risks covered,” a market insider told SteelOrbis.
Meanwhile, indicative offers for import HRC on CFR basis have settled at €590-650/mt levels, the same as last week. Ex-Turkey HRC offers have been heard at around €595/mt CFR, without duty, while offers for ex-India HRC have been reported at $685-690/mt CFR, equivalent to approximately €590-595/mt CFR, compared to indicative Indian offers at €590-615/mt CFR reported last week.
Furthermore, indicative ex-Algeria HRC offers have settled at $750-760/mt CFR, which translates to around €645-655/mt CFR. However, according to market sources, they have not been actively offering recently. “People say they are not offering at the moment. Their quota was secured in April and, after selling substantial volumes, they have become cautious due to concerns over quota availability for July customs clearance,” a Spanish trader said.
At the same time, as SteelOrbis reported earlier, this week the European Parliament approved new trade protection measures aimed at safeguarding the EU steel industry from global overcapacity and rising imports after the current safeguard regime expires on June 30, 2026. The regulation, agreed with the European Council, introduces tighter tariff-rate quotas, higher duties and stricter traceability requirements for imported steel products. It still requires formal Council approval before taking effect on July 1, 2026. Under the new framework, annual duty-free steel import quotas will be reduced to 18.3 million mt, down 47 percent from 2024 levels, while imports exceeding the quotas will be subject to a 50 percent duty, compared to the current 25 percent.
“The most important detail still missing is how the 18.3 million mt quota will be divided among product categories and supplying countries, but in any case a 47 percent reduction in duty-free quotas means substantially less room for imported HRC to enter the EU without paying duties. Importers would have to compete for a smaller quota pool,” a market insider told SteelOrbis.
Meanwhile, unconfirmed market rumours have also emerged regarding ArcelorMittal's indicative pricing targets for third quarter deliveries. According to information circulating among market participants, the producer has been targeting around €740/mt DDP for HRC, €810/mt DDP for CRC and €860/mt DDP for HDG, with lead times from its Dunkirk facility. However, several sources have suggested that these figures appear to reflect current market expectations and achievable transaction levels rather than mills’ firm price ambitions. “If HRC is at €740/mt DDP, that is around €720/mt ex-works, and with €40/mt available for negotiation, the workable level comes back to around €680/mt, which is extremely low,” a market source commented.