Germany increased steel production by 9.5% y/y in April

In April 2026, German steelmakers increased steel production by 9.5% year-on-year, reaching 3.23 million tons. At the same time, production fell by 3.3% compared to the previous month. This is according to data from the German Steel Association (WV Stahl).

Oxygen converters produced 2.22 million tons of steel during the month, which is 10.7% more than in April 2025. Compared to March, output in this segment rose by 0.5%. In contrast, steel production in electric arc furnaces amounted to 1.01 million tons, increasing by 7.1% year-on-year but decreasing by 10.8% month-on-month.

Pig iron production in April rose by 10.9% year-on-year – to 2.06 million tons. Compared to March, the figure increased by 2%. Hot-rolled steel production for the month amounted to 2.75 million tons, which is 10.5% higher year-on-year but 4.6% lower compared to the previous month.

In January–April 2026, Germany produced 12.49 million tons of steel, a 9.1% increase compared to the same period in 2025. Oxygen converters produced 8.61 million tons of steel (+11% y/y), while electric arc furnaces produced 3.88 million tons (+5.2% y/y).

Pig iron output rose by 10.5% year-on-year over the four-month period, reaching 7.93 million tons. Hot-rolled steel production totaled 10.76 million tons, up 6.3% compared to January–April of last year.

The data confirms that the recovery in steel production in Germany is continuing, with growth being driven by both the open-hearth and electric arc furnace segments. At the same time, this improvement does not yet signal a full recovery from the crisis: production remains below the level needed for sufficient capacity utilization. This indicates that demand for steel in Germany and the EU is gradually stabilizing but is still insufficient for a sustainable recovery of steel mills.

As a reminder, in 2025, Germany reduced steel production by 8.6% compared to 2024—to 34.09 million tons. Last year, 23.64 million tons of steel were produced in basic oxygen furnaces (-10.7% y/y), and 10.44 million tons in electric arc furnaces (-3.5% y/y). Pig iron production over the 12-month period fell by 10.1% year-on-year, to 21.87 million tons. Rolled steel production decreased by 5.5% year-on-year, to 29.76 million tons.