In the week to Thursday, October 22, plate prices in Europe remained stable. Market participants reported low trading activity in Italy and Northern Europe, with producers already targeting higher prices for 2027.
Italy
In Italy, most offers for steel plate were in the range of €740–750 ($830–842) per tonne ex-works, according to market participants. Prices were unchanged week on week.
Market participants said producers were seeking €770–780 per tonne ex-works for material to be delivered in January 2027. One trader said deals at the top end of this range had already been concluded. However, some market participants doubted that prices this high had actually been achieved in the market.
Fastmarkets did not include the range of €770–780 per tonne ex-works in its assessment because the delivery period fell outside the agency’s methodology, which covers a period of up to six weeks.
“Plate prices are stuck at €740–750 per tonne ex-works in Italy, although most rerollers are seeking at least a €30-per-tonne increase for January deliveries,” a producer representative said.
On Thursday, October 22, Fastmarkets’ weekly assessment of domestic Southern European steel plate, 8–40 mm thick, ex-works stood at €740–750 per tonne, unchanged week on week.
Meanwhile, import prices for steel slabs in Italy edged down amid weaker prices in Asia. Market participants said uncertainty over costs under the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) and emissions checks was complicating purchasing decisions and the assessment of alternative supplier countries.
Fastmarkets’ weekly assessment of steel slab imports delivered to Italy (CIF) on October 22 was $580–590 per tonne. The range moved down by $5 per tonne from $580–595 the previous week.
Market participants reported no new prices for imported plate, citing heightened risks associated with CBAM.
Fastmarkets’ weekly assessment of imported plate, 8–40 mm thick, delivered to major Southern European ports (CFR), remained at €710–750 per tonne on Thursday.
Northern Europe
The Northern European market was quiet during the week. Some participants attended the Euroblech trade fair in Hanover, which ran from October 20 to 23, leaving little price data available.
A trader said workable prices for commodity plate in Germany were €850–880 per tonne ex-works and were broadly unchanged. No other price data was reported during the assessment period.
As a result, Fastmarkets’ latest weekly assessment of domestic Northern European steel plate, 8–40 mm thick, ex-works was unchanged at €840–880 per tonne as of October 22.
No new information was reported on plate imports into the region; market participants said there was no demand for purchases.
“Imports are not worth considering right now — at least not for Antwerp,” the same trader said.
Fastmarkets’ weekly assessment of imported plate, 8–40 mm thick, delivered to major Northern European ports (CFR), was €710–750 per tonne on Thursday, unchanged week on week.
By Ivelina Nikolova
fastmarkets.com