Ukraine’s rebar exports fell by 28% in 2020

Ukraine’s exports of rebar in 2020 shrank by 28.2% to 992.9 thousand tons against 2019 in physical terms and by 36.3% to $399.9 million in monetary terms. The share of rebar in the general structure of exports of metal products was 5.4% (in physical terms), according to the customs statistics.

The largest importers of Ukraine-made rebar were:

• Iraq — $103.8 million (-29.3% against 2019),
• Singapore — $61.2 million (-8%),
• Romania — $34.1 million (+79.2%).

Imports of rebar from Ukraine in 2020 shrank by 16.4% to 203.2 thousand tons in physical terms and by 24.4% to $91.9 million in monetary terms. The share of rebar in the general structure of exports of metal products was 15.9% (in physical terms).

The largest exporters of rebar to Ukraine were:

• Belarus — $43.5 million (+9.6% against 2019),
• Russia — $25.6 million (-22.2%),
• Turkey – $13.5 million (-59.6%).

As GMK Center reported earlier, at the end of the past year, Ukraine imposed a special duty on imports of rebar and wire rod from Belarus in the amount of 16.08% of the customs value. In the future, this should result in a decrease in imports of these metal products from Belarus.

In 2020, the domestic rebar market shrank due to the pandemic, as many consumers cut production programs and froze ongoing projects. The last year’s overall decline in this market is estimated at 5–10% despite concerns of a 12–15% fall in late 2020.