Exclusive Poland increased scrap exports by 8.6% y/y in 1H2025

Raw material imports grew by over 50%

Polish companies specializing in ferrous scrap operations increased their exports of raw materials to third countries by 8.6% in January-June 2025 compared to the same period in 2024, to 630,670 tons. This is evidenced by GMK Center calculations based on Eurostat data.

About 80% of exports go to Turkey, India, and Pakistan. In particular, 286.98 thousand tons of scrap were sent to the Turkish market, which is 8% more than in January-June 2024, 185.63 thousand tons to India (at the same level as last year), and Pakistan – 31.85 thousand tons (-34.5% y/y).

Imports of scrap from non-EU countries reached 173.04 thousand tons in six months, which is 50.4% more y/y. Almost all the raw materials were imported from Ukraine – 171.31 thousand tons (+56.4% y/y).

It should be noted that in 2024, Poland significantly increased its scrap exports to Turkey – 2.3 times y/y, to 529 thousand tons. This year, the trend continues, but at a much slower pace. The surge in sales of raw materials in this direction coincided with the entry of Ukrainian raw materials into the Polish market in 2022-2023, which may indicate the formation of Poland’s transit role in the supply chain of raw materials to Turkish consumers.

As GMK Center reported earlier, the ferrous scrap market in Poland has undergone significant changes and growth in recent years. At the end of 2024, raw material exports grew by 5.9% compared to 2023, reaching a record 2.81 million tons. At the same time, imports grew by 2.3% y/y – to 956,000 tons.