[SMM Steel] European HRC: bottoming Buyer Inventories Boost Procurement Expectations, High Cost Support Mill Price Hikes

Published: Oct 09, 2026 15:35 (GMT+8)

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[Europe] European hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices edged up. Driven by ongoing buyer inventory depletion, approaching restocking demand, and elevated production costs, European steel mills have generally raised their quotes with strong price-firming intentions. Although the market expects no large-scale concentrated restocking before November, distributors report that inventory levels are steadily hitting bottom. On pricing, the Northwest European HRC ex-works price held steady at 731 EUR/mt EXW (818 USD/tonne), while the Italian HRC price rose to 734 EUR/tonne EXW (821 USD/tonne). In Northern Europe, prices trended upward with mainstream delivered quotes ranging between 740–750 EUR/tonne DDP (830–842 USD/tonne). Workable transaction levels for integrated mills shifted upward to 745–760 EUR/mt. Affected by earlier restart delays, December allocation supplies from some mills remain tight, underpinning firm pricing stances. In Southern Europe (Italy), mill offers generally rose to 750–760 EUR/tonne DDP (842–853 USD/tonne), making previous lower-priced transactions difficult to find. Some producers stated that current prices are near production cost red lines, leaving little economic logic for price cuts amid ongoing geopolitical and supply disruptions. On imports, Indian HRC quotes to Northern Europe hovered around 760 USD/tonne CFR, while Turkish HRC for late-December shipment was quoted at 630 EUR/tonne FOB. As Turkish and Indian origins face elevated tariff rate quota (TRQ) and anti-dumping risks, European buyers are gradually shifting toward lower-risk origins such as Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan.

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