European stainless steel distributors are preparing for a difficult summer as prices will continue to fall in June amid low demand and ongoing import competition, Fastmarkets sources said a week before Friday, July 4.
"I don't think I've ever seen such a difficult period that lasted so long," said the distributor in Italy. "Prices were constantly and non-stop declining without any friction or opposition."
Fastmarkets' monthly estimate of prices for cold-rolled 2 mm thick 304 stainless steel sheet produced domestically and shipped to Northern Europe was 2,350-2,420 euros (2,755-2,837 USD) per ton on July 4, which is 50-80 euros lower than 2,400-2,500 euros per ton on June 6.
Since the beginning of 2025, consumption in key end-user markets of stainless steel has not improved, forcing distributors to take a wait-and-see attitude.- and let's see what happens before the end of summer, which is traditionally a period of low sales.
"The news is more negative than the real situation. We also had such difficult periods in the past," said the distributor in Germany. "If you look at the first six months of this year compared to last year, sales and margins remain low, but in the end, everyone is moving forward. Perhaps there will be positive signs in the autumn."
While cheap imports from East Asia continued to put pressure on prices, the weakening dollar helped ease some of the pressure.
On July 4, 1 euro was worth $1.18 compared to $1.14 on June 6, according to data from the Fastmarkets currency converter. This means that in dollar terms, the cost of cold-rolled 304 stainless steel sheet on July 4 decreased to 2,765-2,848 dollars per ton compared to 2,734-2,848 dollars per ton on June 6, which at that time was equivalent to 2,400-2,500 euros per ton.
Zdravko Cherkezov
Fastmarkets.com
