Stocks reached their lowest level in August and apparent demand has now returned along with rising coil and derivatives prices. Purchases in Europe are also sustained by the lack of coil imports, which have been hampered by the European Commission's anti-circulation review.
In Italy, December stainless cold rolled coil prices increased to €2,550-2,600/ton ($2,691-2,743) for December production, while hot rolled coil averaged at €2,350/t ex-base. European mills are rumoured to have delayed deliveries.
After service centres and their customers made purchases in September and October, sales activity is currently quiet with buyers adopting a wait-and-see attitude. Activity is expected to pick up again in November when buyers will have to make purchases for January delivery. Inventories in Italy and Poland are said to be higher than in other European countries such as the Czech Republic, Hungary, France and Germany.
The outlook for the European market for the fourth quarter has improved, especially compared to the lows in Q2 and Q3, but activity is still weak and downstream consumption is limited. The lack of coil imports from Asia and higher scrap prices due to shortages will continue to support stainless flat prices until the end of the year.
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