Press release in focus
Persisting downside risks ground growth as high uncertainty keeps dominating European steel market
Brussels, 02 December 2025 – Unchanged negative conditions – U.S. tariffs and trade disruptions, economic and geopolitical tensions, protracted weak demand and still high energy prices – continue to weigh on the European steel market. EUROFER’s latest Economic and Steel Market Outlook confirms for 2025 another recession in both apparent steel consumption (-0.2%, unchanged) and steel-using sectors (-0.5%, revised from -0.7%). A potential recovery is expected only in 2026 for the Steel Weighted Industrial Production index (SWIP) (+1.8%, stable) and for apparent steel consumption (+3%, slightly revised from +3.1%) – although consumption volumes would still remain well below pre-pandemic levels. Steel imports retained historically high shares (27%), while exports plummeted (-9%) in the first eight months of 2025.
