Steel Manufacturers Face A 75% Reduction In Orders, The Eu Halved Production Capacity

Affected by the current COVID-19 epidemic, EU steel production has been reduced by 50%, and because the number of new orders from steel mills has been reduced by as much as 75%, output is expected to decline further. Steel mills have implemented production restrictions in March.

The World Steel Association (WSA) said that the reduction in the number of orders may result in more production cuts, and the refinery capacity of major EU steel mills may be reduced by 50% under the current crisis.

“Some regions no longer have customers. We expect that about 40% of the workforce will be affected by temporary layoffs and reduced workforce,” Eurofer said.

Statistics show that 28 EU countries produced 159.4 million tons of crude steel in 2019.

The entire steel supply is affected by the reduction in end-user demand. The German Steel Producers Association WSM said earlier this month that about 90% of the country ’s processing plants have been reduced.

John Meyer, an analyst with the brokerage firm SP Angel, said that European steel companies are cutting output faster than steel companies in other regions because they do not expect the EU to try to stimulate demand as much as the Chinese government does.

“In the UK, only large public projects like HS2 continue, and most other private housing construction has significantly slowed down or stopped completely. Due to blockade restrictions, home builders are unable to remove steel (decorative stainless steel pipes, structure uses duplex pipe and fittings, drinking water pipes, etc.), which will inevitably lead to a slowdown in production, ” John said.