Aan dit soort positieve berichten kan het allemaal niet liggen. 2.5% groei voor Europa ligt echt wel hoger dan wat er tot nu toe steeds verwacht werd. De kernmarkt voor AM.
Europe steel demand growth may hit 2.5% on economic sentiment: Eurofer
Dusseldorf, Germany (Platts)--25 Apr 2017 1027 am EDT/1427 GMT
The European steel industry, working with steel demand annual growth now expected at up to 2.5% this year, may be benefiting from recent strong economic sentiment extending into March, steel industry group Eurofer said Tuesday.
"Globally things are improving since the second half of last year," Jeroen Vermeij, director of market analysis at Brussels-based Eurofer said Tuesday at the Eurocoke Summit in Dusseldorf. "We're seeing the first signs of a synchronized global recovery."
While staying cautious around the contribution of key steel demand growth drivers in Europe, Eurofer expects steel demand expansion to be assured around automotive, manufacturing and construction sectors over the next year or two.
"We should see 2% to 2.5% growth in activity in steel using sectors in 2017 and 2018, which is not bad," Vermeij told delegates. This followed 3.2% growth in 2016 and earlier Eurofer estimates of 2% annual growth this year.
Central Europe may be the fastest growing region, he added, highlighting areas such as infrastructure in Poland, while southern Europe is starting to contribute more. He said Spain was now seeing a good rebound in steel demand from a low base.
Eurofer sees the UK as the weakest economy in the region, suffering from inertia around investments as the Brexit decision of June last year now starts to be felt, Vermeij said.
The group, which represents European steelmakers, reiterated concerns around steel imports to the EU.
"This is now the third year we see much stronger growth in imports than domestic deliveries," Vermeij said.
China may be reducing steel exports, but the gap left by China is being filled by other countries, he said, citing material from India, South Korea and Turkey among others.
"The import pressure remains high," he said. "The risk is we will not benefit from EU steel demand due to heavy imports, and some can be categorized as unfair imports."
Steel imports into the EU are picking up, growing last year by 9%, to make up a 24% share of the market since the second half of 2016, Eurofer figures showed.
It said it is cautious on investment appetite in Europe, particularly in the corporate sector, on risks and uncertainty, with the French presidential elections adding to the mood.
But in regional manufacturing, purchasing managers' indices are showing a rising trend.
Automotive demand remains robust, while the trend's continued longevity and potentially disruptive global industry changes were highlighted by Eurofer.
"There are the first signs of saturation in some markets. US auto sales may have peaked, and emerging production is growing and replacing EU exports," Vermeij said.