Prices for German profiles are stable as mills prepare breaks
Corrugated sheet prices in Germany and neighboring countries are currently stabilizing after a recent slight decline ahead of the upcoming summer holidays at factories.
In May, many players predicted that prices for Category 1 sections would reach and potentially exceed 850 euros per ton ($974), but it turned out that they were wrong. Instead, prices dropped slightly by 10-20 euros per ton and are now in the range of 820-830 euros per ton at domestic plants. Offers from Spain or Poland may be even closer to the 800 euro per ton mark, one buyer notes.
In April and May, distributors reported a slight shortage of long products of categories 1-3, which prompted companies to raise prices.
According to one of the managers, this was partly due to the high activity on temporary orders from the UK, which had expired. In addition, the technical problems at the Benelux plant, which have not stopped since last fall, have been fixed.
"Several factors played a role, but now they have disappeared, so the volume of supplies has returned to normal, and the plants had to reduce prices by 10-20 euros per ton," he tells Kallanish.
Significant changes are expected at the plants in the future, before the summer holidays. According to observers, there will be a two-week maintenance break at one German plant in early July, and at the end of this month at another. - And as soon as they start working again, the Italians will take a break, as well as the Luxembourgers and Poles.
During the remaining weeks of work, "the plants will be loaded quite well, including with supplies to Canada and the United States," one of the observers notes. According to him, the next noticeable trend in prices will appear no earlier than September.
Author: Christian Kel
Kallanish.com