Southern European cold rolled coil quotations are under pressure due to low import prices mainly from China and Russia. Local producers are slowly adapting to the lower import quotations – on average, Italian and Spanish CRC has come down €10/tonne ($11) on June, market sources tell Kallanish.

However, southern European buyers and producers are expecting anti-dumping measures to take effect in the next few months, which will turn around the situation of local CRC prices. “The level of imports is already beginning to reduce because buyers are afraid to buy material that’s delivered after the end of the year,” one source comments.

Italy and Spain are more exposed to imports than the rest of Europe, and CRC prices are on average €20/t lower than in France and Germany.

China- and Russia-origin imports are currently pegged at $400-420/t (€361-379/t) cif Italy. The base ex-works price of local material in Italy and Spain is €430-440/t ex-works, which means up to €460/t with extras. In France and Germany base ex-works CRC quotations are on average at €450/t, or €475/t with extras, sources say.