July EU HRC imports show 175,000t pullback

: Metals
24/09/17

EU hot-rolled coil (HRC) imports surpassed 1.5mn t in July — a record high — as importers for the first time faced a cap to the ‘other countries' safeguard quota, which led some to purchase back-up material from other sources.

More importantly, official figures show that around 175,000t were pulled back from customs clearing, likely all in Italy, after the initial quota numbers were made available in early July from Egypt, Vietnam, Japan and Taiwan. This leftover amount will likely all be custom-cleared in October, in addition to material that has arrived since July, as market participants expect importers to clear all of their HRC to avoid the risk of retroactive duties, potentially applicable from December.

Imports from Taiwan, India, Turkey and Japan in July all surpassed the 200,000t mark each, with total imports from those four origins close to 900,000t, a sharp year-on-year increase. Vietnam saw volumes drop (see table), while South Korean imports fell by 75pc on the year to 40,379t and Serbian imports were down by 10pc to 37,437t.

Hot-dipped galvanised (HDG) imports were at a record high, topping 750,000t in July, with nearly 30pc of the total from Vietnam. There has been concern in the market that the EU might start an investigation on Vietnamese HDG, as volumes have been on the increase, while suppliers are regularly the lowest-priced in the market. Plate imports were also at a record high, as EU producers are preparing to file for an investigation on some origins.

Meanwhile, the increase in imports and the drop in EU demand has led producers to seek export outlets, with EU HRC exports rising on the year and on the month in July to nearly 230,000t, with the bulk going to the UK, US and Turkey. Downstream product exports also increased.

By Lora Stoyanova and Colin Richardson

July EU HRC imports		t
	July	y-o-y ±%

Taiwan	227,892.8	8.2
India	225,558.6	134.8
Turkey	223,185.9	255.2
Japan	210,842.9	6.5
Egypt	158,625.7	31.9
Vietnam	144,202.0	-59.5
Ukraine	101,721.2	118.5
Australia	51,784.0	104.4
Saudi Arabia	40,594.8	-36.4
Total	1,565,744.2	9.1
— GTT

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24/12/30

Viewpoint: Ti scrap’s rebound pinned on Boeing, melters

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Viewpoint: Cu smelting capacity to outpace mining

24/12/30

Viewpoint: Cu smelting capacity to outpace mining

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Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Singapore extends electric vehicle incentive to 2027

24/12/30

Singapore extends electric vehicle incentive to 2027

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Viewpoint: US stainless recovery expected in 1H

24/12/27

Viewpoint: US stainless recovery expected in 1H

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Viewpoint: Indian FeCr to face pressure in 1Q 2025

24/12/27

Viewpoint: Indian FeCr to face pressure in 1Q 2025

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