Spain reduced steel production by 12.2% m/m in August

In January-August, Spanish steelmakers reduced steel production by 7.1% y/y

In August 2023, Spanish steel companies reduced steel production by 12.2% compared to the previous month – to 790 thousand tons. Compared to August 2022, the indicator increased by 16.7%. This is evidenced by WorldSteel Association’s data.

In January-August 2023, Spanish steelmakers increased steel production by 7.1% compared to the same period last year – up to 7.42 million tons.

The average monthly production of steel in Spain, in 8 months, amounted to 927 thousand tons, while for the same period in 2022, the indicator was at the level of 998 thousand tons (-7.1% y/y).

In 2022 Spain reduced steel production by 19.2% compared to 2021 – to 11.46 million tons. In December, the country’s steelmakers produced 686,000 tons of steel, which is 19.8% less than the previous month.

In general, steel production in the countries of the European Union in August 2023 fell by 4.4% compared to August last year – to 9.1 million tons. In January-August 2023, 85.7 million tons of steel were produced in the EU, which is 9.8% less y/y.

The decline in steel production is likely due to weak demand for finished products, as well as unfavorable price conditions. The high production costs of steelmakers do not allow reducing steel prices to levels that would be favorable for buyers, so the demand for domestic products is low. At the same time, imported steel is in demand thanks to lower prices.

As GMK Center reported earlier, in 2022 European steelmakers reduced steel production by 10.5% compared to 2021 – to 136.7 million tons. In general, global steel output last year fell by 4.3% y/y – to 1.831 billion tons.