The European long steel market has remained mostly stable this week, with just minor changes in the market fundamentals. Import longs prices, however, have increased a little, amid higher export prices from Turkey and a stable euro-dollar exchange rate.
In Italy, local rebar prices are remaining range-bound and have been reported at €230-240/mt ex-works base (€495-505/mt ex-works including regular extras). “Mills are asking for at least €30/mt more, but only with the aim of making final customers withdraw the orders they had concluded previously [when rebar sales prices were higher]”. A representative of an Italian steel mill has claimed that longs - especially rebar - sales are difficult “with prices being uncompetitive all over Europe”, as energy prices remain on the high side.
As for wire rod, local prices in Italy have not changed week on week, staying at €575-590/mt delivered for drawing quality and €550-565/mt delivered for mesh quality.
In the meantime, the official closing process of ArcelorMittal’s Zenica and Prijedor plants has started, after their sale by Pavgord group was concluded at the end of June this year, as SteelOrbis had reported. According to local media reports, both sites will be closed in November 2025, and a market source has reported that “theoretically, but this is just a hypothesis, the land occupied by the mills will be converted into a building lot, and the iron ore furnace will be demolished”. The import of this closure on the market remains to be seen.
In the export segment, rebar prices from Spain to UK ports have remained unchanged from the previous week at around €540/mt FOB, whereas ex-Greece rebar and wire rod prices have been reported by market sources at €560/mt and €555/mt, respectively.
As for imports, rebar and wire rod dollar-based prices from Turkey have increased by $10/mt week on week. Considering the euro-dollar exchange rate at 1.16, CFR prices for Turkish rebar in the European Union are €10/mt higher on the upper end of the range, standing at €500-510/mt. Ex-Turkey wire rod prices to the same destination have reached €505-510/mt CFR.