Overview

Global steel demand fell for a consecutive year in 2023 and is projected to see only a small rebound in 2024 as economies continue to grapple with the Ukraine war impact, high inflation, high costs and monetary tightening. The geopolitical scenario has deteriorated even further since the outbreak of war in Gaza and the investment climate remains shaky amid fears of conflict escalation in the Middle East.

China’s post-Covid demand rebound was a damp squib last year, and post-Lunar New Year demand failed to materialise this year, with market players still awaiting the impact of Chinese government support measures. Chinese steel exports consequently continue to climb in 2024 after seeing  a seven-year high in 2023. Chinese product is displacing HRC in other Asian markets. This has resulted in the EU’s “other country” quota for HRC being exhausted within days for multiple quarters. Last year, Japan, Taiwan and, especially, Vietnam increased their HRC shipments to the bloc.

India is adding HRC capacity at pace, in anticipation of booming domestic demand after the stifling general election impact subsides. It, too, has seen sizeable imports from China and is eyeing the higher-paying EU market for exports of its HRC, frequently exhausting its quota.

The first quarter of the year saw iron ore and HRC prices drop across the globe, with much talk of Chinese production cuts but thus far no action. EU mills are meanwhile being forced to cut production amid higher costs and imports taking a growing market share.

The major flat steel-consuming automotive sector is expected to see weak growth at best in 2024 after being the only bright spot in 2023.

Kallanish Flat Steel 2024 will debate the most important trends impacting the global flat steel market in order to understand what the industry has in store.

• Global Overview: Regional coil markets supply, demand and price trends
• Raw materials: Pricing developments and impact on flat steel market
• End-user demand: Impact of rising costs, inflation, and supply chain risks
• Overcapacity: Analysis of the longer-term global market trends
• Green transition: Challenges of sustainable steel industry decarbonisation
• Energy costs: Impact of higher energy costs on production
• China: will a demand rebound materialise? Will it cut production?
• EU production: will offline capacity be recommissioned amid high costs?
• European policy: How will CBAM account for EU mills’ export competitiveness?
• US: When will much-anticipated interest rate cuts materialise and boost sentiment?

Flat Steel 2023 video

Take a look at the event highlights from the sold out Flat Steel 2023 conference. Click here to watch the video.

Information

• Register your interest to speak at Flat Steel 2024
• Register your interest to sponsor Flat Steel 2024

Venue

Flat Steel 2024 will take place at the luxurious Ciragan Palace Kempinski

Address: Ciragan Palace Kempinski - Yıldız, Çırağan Cd. No:32, 34349 Beşiktaş/İstanbul, Türkiye

Click here to view the venue location on a map.

Diamond Sponsor

Yıldız Demir Çelik https://www.yildizdemircelik.com.tr/

Yıldız Demir Çelik is an investment by Yıldızlar Yatırım Holding, which has made significant investments in Türkiye and worldwide since 1890, to contribute to the development of the iron and steel industry.

Founded in Kocaeli Alikahya Organized Industrial Zone on 300,000 square meters in 2018 and driven by an experience of over a century, we introduce the quality of Turkish steel to the entire world at Yıldız Demir Çelik through our development- and people-oriented approach and export operations to over 50 countries across 5 continents. Committed to offering high-quality products and ensuring customer satisfaction, we are achieving the fastest growth in our industry and providing our business partners with the best experience. We aim to become a global brand in our field.

Combining technology with quality, we carry out our manufacturing operations with a Continuous Pickling Tandem Line (with a 1,300,000 ton-capacity), Cleaning Line (with a 300,000 ton-capacity), Batch Annealing Line (with a 270,000 ton-capacity), Temper Rolling Line (with a 400,000 ton-capacity), Color Coating Line (with a 150,000 ton-capacity), and Continuous Galvanizing Lines (with a 700,000 ton-capacity) while responding to the needs of our customers operating in various industries, including whitegoods, automotive, panel radiator, silo, packaging, sandwich panel, and energy, with our Slitting Lines (with a 160,000 ton-capacity), Cut-to-Length line (with an 80,000 ton-capacity), and Trapezoidal Line (with a 30,000 ton-capacity) at our Steel Services Center.

In our laboratories, the first ones to be accredited by the ISO 17025 standard for tensile testing along with galvanized and painted product testing in the Turkish flat steel industry, we perform various tests on our products, as well as experiments and analyses that our stakeholders may require.

Adopting the ISO 10002 Customer Satisfaction Management System, we strive to ensure customer satisfaction and serve our business partners via our user-friendly Stargate Customer Portal for the best customer experience and active process management.

As the first iron and steel company that uses grey water in Türkiye, we implement many environmentally-friendly practices, including waste-water recovery and carbon footprint calculation, conducting dedicated efforts to leave a sustainable world to future generations.

Guided by the light of science and technology and operating with a focus on high-quality products and services, we are at the heart of life, aspiring to add value to the industry through our customer and employee satisfaction projects and to go beyond steel!

Event Partners

YISAD http://www.yisad.org.tr/

Flat Steel Import, Export and Industry Association was founded in 2003 by the founder president Mustafa Açıkalın, for the purpose of gathering flat steel importers, exporters and traders together with the industrialists who are engaged in manufacturing using flat steel, under one roof in an effective way; establishing cooperation and solidarity; working on the identification and solution of the requirements and problems of the industry.

BigMint https://www.bigmint.co/

BigMint is a trusted platform for price reporting, market intelligence and consulting for commodities. We enable businesses to take critical market decisions by providing information gathered from diverse networks, using globally benchmarked, compliant methods & technologies, keeping them at the forefront of the industry.

We add further value by offering reliable insights & consulting services for a host of Commodity markets.

EUROMETAL http://www.eurometal.net

EUROMETAL is the European federation of steel tubes and metals distribution and trading. The roots of EUROMETAL date back to 1950, when the European Community for Coal and Steel was created by Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. EUROMETAL members are national federations of steel, metals and tubes distribution as well as distribution, SSC and trading companies having cross border activities in European OECD countries.

MESteel https://www.mesteel.com/start.htm

MESTEEL is a Middle East b2b steel portal, providing buyers and sellers with, an in-depth database, steel offers, inquiries, news, jobs, information, events.

International Tube Association https://www.itatube.org/ 

The International Tube Association is a non-profit-making organisation totally committed to its members and to the promoting of education, technical development and trade relationships.

As the world’s largest—and only globally active—membership association of tube and pipe engineers and industry professionals, the ITA dedicates itself to technical excellence and global networking in the wider industry.

Founded in the spring of 1979 in Birmingham, UK, the ITA saw its membership grow steadily in the first decade, particularly in the US, and following the establishment of a US Management Board in 1990 similar regional Boards and offices were set up around the world, including in India and Russia.

In 1986, the Association created the first Tube Düsseldorf exhibition along with NOWEA (now Messe Düsseldorf); by the early 90s, we were established as the expo giant’s industry partner and a main sponsor of Tube Düsseldorf. Over the next decade, this came to include Tube fairs all over the world, with the ITA present at the first Tube Singapore, the first Tube India, the first Tube Russia and the first Tube China.

Our British founders held their first technical conference in November of the founding year, 1979. In our determination to promote excellence and offer support for the development of expertise, we have been organising and facilitating similar events ever since.

NASS https://www.nass.org.uk/

Since its establishment in 1928, NASS has been successfully working to promote the interests of steel service centres throughout the UK. NASS is the only trade association covering the whole of the UK steel stockholding industry. NASS members supply steel to UK manufacturing and are a vital link in the supply chain from producer to customer, handling some 8 million tonnes of steel a year, principally to the construction, automotive and engineering industries.

Japan Metal Daily https://www.japanmetaldaily.com/

Japan Metal Daily (Tekko Shimbun, JMD) is the largest Japanese daily newspaper focusing on Steel and Non-ferrous metal industries. While we
are based in Japan, our reporting is not limited to Japan but also events occurring in Asia and other regions, such as global alliances between corporations, especially Kallanish.

Demir Celik Store http://www.demircelikstore.com/

Iron & Steel Store Magazine publishes to the following sectors: Iron &Steel, Stainless Steel, Pipe, Machine, Logistics, Shipbuilding, Lifting and Carrying Machines, Warehousing, Cable, Lube Oils, Hydraulic – Pneumatic, Construction, Galvanize, Chrome, Aluminium, Molting, Automative Supplier Industry, White Goods Supplier Industry. The magazine has a 5,000 reader circulation per month. It is distributed to readers within the subscription system and is sent out to industry sites, organised industry areas and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the cities free of charge. With the publication content, press quality, wide distribution network and the objectivitism, it has become the leader of the sector within the second year of trading.

Steel Exporters' Association​ www.cib.org.tr

Steel Exporters' Association is a non-profit business organization of more than 1250 companies representing the largest steel producers and exporters in the Turkish steel industry. It carries on its operations with the aim of increasing the export potential of the Turkish steel industry and paves the way for Turkish steel producers/exporters, with main objective to foster and attain sustainable global steel market based on free and fair trade. The Association also solves the problems of its member companies face at home and abroad, provides contact between members and foreign importers in order to ease the export processes, serves up-to-date domestic and global market news, reports and analyses. 

The Port of Antwerp-Bruges www.portofantwerpbruges.com

Antwerp-Bruges, your breakbulk home port

“No size fits all.” Shipping general cargo such as steel, project cargo, and forest products is a bespoke job. Thanks to its can-do attitude and the extensive experience of its many service providers, the port of Antwerp-Bruges ships over 10 million tons of general cargo on a yearly basis, with an eye for quality.

Outstanding connections

The port has outstanding connections with the foreland via regular breakbulk lines. Referring to the hinterland, breakbulk reaches or leaves the port by road, rail, shortsea and inland navigation.

Extraordinary expertise

Antwerp has been the breakbulk port par excellence in Europe for many centuries. The port has the best and most highly experienced people in-house in order to bring the most complex commissions to a successful conclusion.

Prices

We are currently in the super early bird price period and offer a discounted rate for group bookings of 3 or more people.