[SMM Steel] Mills Hold Firm on Prices Driving Slight Gains; European HRC Trades Firmly Rangebound During Summer Lull

Published: Aug 5, 2026 16:37

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[EU] European hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices edged slightly higher today, primarily driven by strong willingness among steelmakers to hold firm on prices, although some room for negotiation remains between buyers and sellers. Currently, most producers have completed their Q3 production scheduling, and their strong pricing stance has established a firm bottom support at 830 USD/tonne EXW. On the supply and demand front, despite sluggish end-user demand, EU blast furnace capacity utilization saw a slight month-on-month increase. The Southern European market has fully entered summer holiday mode, with some fully-booked mills taking the opportunity to withdraw their offers. On the import side, buyers' procurement willingness remains low due to concerns over the potential exhaustion of Q4 import quotas. Among them, Indian offers to Europe held steady at 650 USD/tonne CFR, while Italian import quotes remained firm at 570 USD/tonne CIF.

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