According to Eurostat data’s analysis, France’s steel industry recorded a notable increase [1] in exports of rolled metal products to third countries, increasing by 16.9% year-on-year to 158.21 thousand tons in January 2025. Compared to December 2024, exports also saw a strong 24.9% month-on-month rise.
Exports of long products surged significantly, rising 57.4% y/y and more than double m/m, reaching 33.28 thousand tons. Meanwhile, flat steel exports climbed 9.4% y/y and 12.2% m/m, totaling 124.93 thousand tons. Among the key product categories, hot-rolled flat products (HS-7208) led the shipments at 55.5 thousand tons, reflecting a 36.7% y/y and 19.8% m/m increase. Other major exported steel goods included carbon steel flat products (HS-7225) at 38.65 thousand tons, coated flat steel (HS-7210) at 20.64 thousand tons, and hot-rolled rods and bars (HS-7213) at 19.65 thousand tons, which saw a staggering 7.7-fold increase y/y and a 4.9-fold rise m/m.
At the same time, France’s imports of rolled steel products grew sharply, increasing 51.8% y/y and more than 2.6 times m/m, reaching 45.65 thousand tons. The rise was driven by shipments of long products, which totaled 22.17 thousand tons (+32.4% y/y; +2.6 times m/m), while flat steel imports expanded to 23.48 thousand tons, marking a 76.3% y/y and fourfold m/m increase.
Leading imported products included hot-rolled flat steel (HS-7208) at 11.68 thousand tons, reflecting a 13-fold increase y/y, and coated flat steel (HS-7210) at 6.83 thousand tons, which dropped 10.6% y/y but surged 7.6 times m/m. Additionally, carbon steel rods and bars (HS-7214) at 6.37 thousand tons rose 20.1% y/y and 67.1% m/m, while angles, shapes, and profiles of non-alloy steel (HS-7216) at 5.68 thousand tons climbed 45% y/y and more than 2.7 times m/m.
French steel production rebounded in 2024, registering a 7.6% y/y increase to 10.76 million tons, after a sharp 17.5% decline in 2023. Monthly production averaged 896.25 thousand tons, recovering from 833 thousand tons in 2023, but still below the 1.01 million-ton average in 2022.
Sources:
[1] France increased rolled steel exports by 16.9% y/y in January https://gmk.center/en/news/france-increased-rolled-steel-exports-by-16-9-y-y-in-january/