European Steel Association EUROFER in its latest Economic and steel market outlook 1121-2022 Fourth quarter 2021 report, which has data up to second quarter 2021, reported that over the second quarter of 2021 output in the tube sector increased by an exceptional by 30.7% year-on-year, mostly due to the comparison with the very low output volumes recorded one year before. After a series of six quarterly decreases in a row, the negative trend started reversing already in the first quarter of 2021, with a growth of 3.4%.Production activity in the EU steel tube industry has become increasingly aligned with downstream sectors such as construction, automotive, metal goods and mechanical engineering. Nonetheless, the tube industry had proven relatively resilient during 2019, showing more moderate decreases in output compared to other steel-using sectors. This can be partly explained by the links with the construction sector in the EU, which had a positive impact on demand for steel tubes at least up to the first quarter of 2020. The trend ended with the pandemic, which impacted also the construction sector. A rebound in steel tube output of 12.5%, revised upwards from 9.8% in the previous Outlook is expected for 2021, followed by more moderate growth of 2.3% in 2022. Steel tube output fell for the third consecutive year in 2020, at a much faster rate than in 2019 minus 14% vs minus 0.3%.
European Steel Association EUROFER in its latest Economic and steel market outlook 1121-2022 Fourth quarter 2021 report, which has data up to second quarter 2021, reported that over the second quarter of 2021 output in the tube sector increased by an exceptional by 30.7% year-on-year, mostly due to the comparison with the very low output volumes recorded one year before. After a series of six quarterly decreases in a row, the negative trend started reversing already in the first quarter of 2021, with a growth of 3.4%.Production activity in the EU steel tube industry has become increasingly aligned with downstream sectors such as construction, automotive, metal goods and mechanical engineering. Nonetheless, the tube industry had proven relatively resilient during 2019, showing more moderate decreases in output compared to other steel-using sectors. This can be partly explained by the links with the construction sector in the EU, which had a positive impact on demand for steel tubes at least up to the first quarter of 2020. The trend ended with the pandemic, which impacted also the construction sector. A rebound in steel tube output of 12.5%, revised upwards from 9.8% in the previous Outlook is expected for 2021, followed by more moderate growth of 2.3% in 2022. Steel tube output fell for the third consecutive year in 2020, at a much faster rate than in 2019 minus 14% vs minus 0.3%.
