Advertise on podcast: Speaking of Steel

CBAM experts shared insight and real-world experience to bring clarity to the EU’s emissions-based border controls in MEPS’s new Speaking of Steel podcast.MEPS steel market analyst Jon Carruthers-Green was joined by carbon and energy specialist Andy Proctor, from Auditel, and international trade expert Kieran McCann, of Allied Group, to provide a 40-minute update on CBAM. Alongside detail from a series of recent European Commission “document dumps”, which provide new detail on the legislation’s continued rollout, the episode features real-world accounts of potentially costly compliance issues encountered by steel importers, as well as: Steel importers’ key contractual considerations when agreeing DDP import terms to mitigate CBAM costs.The January 2027 launch of a UK CBAM and its possible implications for EU trade.Northern Ireland’s unique position between EU and UK import frameworks and its impending relationship with CBAM.

The future of the North American steel industry’s cross-border trade could be undermined by the US government’s failure to commit to a long-term renewal of USMCA, a new Market in Minutes podcast heard.   MEPS US steel market analyst Laura Hodges discusses the effects of USMCA negotiations on the North American steel market with managing editor Tom Sharpe in the new episode of the regular podcast.   Listen to the full episode now to hear insight about this, alongside insight on: Whether an easing of the upward trend in US steel prices is an indicator of longer-term reductions.How US steel imports are increasing as a result of tight supply and elevated prices.Data centre developments’ role in sustained construction sector steel demand.Feedback from MEPS respondents in Canada and Mexico about the effects of faltering North American trade relations.

Stringent new quotas have increased the risk of exposure to elevated steel import tariffs, making overseas procurement a “high stakes gamble” for buyers in the EU and United Kingdom, a new MEPS podcast concludes.   The new episode, featuring insight from steel market analysts Jon Carruthers-Green, Adam Crookes and Benedicte Mikolajczak and hosted by MEPS managing editor Tom Sharpe, covers the following topics: Winners and losers: the revised TRQs already exceeded, creating cost concerns for buyersFlexibility or complexity? The EU Steel Regulation’s new “overflow” quotas for countries with a free trade agreementIncoming EU “melt and pour” rules of origin: their influence on overseas procurement and future TRQsThe steel supply squeeze created by reduced imports and its influence on prices as inventories declineThe UK steel production limitations behind buyers’ supply concerns

Not all large global steelmakers have leveraged high steel prices to return strong profits during the first quarter of 2026, research conducted for MEPS’s latest Speaking of Steel podcast revealed.   MEPS’s head of price analysis and forecasts, Kaye Ayub, joined steel market analyst Laura Hodges and managing editor Tom Sharpe to explore the profitability of the largest steel producers in the United States, Europe and Asia in the latest episode. Among the topics explored are: The quarter one profits of large steelmakers in the US, Europe and AsiaRaw material prices and the prospect of rising production costsEscalating trade defences and their effect on procurementHow changes in the EU market outlook has stalled takeovers and long-term investmentsWhether elevated prices can be sustained[JP9]  amid continued low demand

MEPS’s new Market in Minutes podcast revealed that an uptick in domestic stainless steel procurement, driven by tightening trade defences, could be starting to slow across Europe. Stainless steel market analyst Michelle Kirton delivers a 15-minute overview of Europe’s stainless steel market in conversation with MEPS managing editor Tom Sharpe in the latest edition of the monthly podcast. MEPS’s new Market in Minutes podcast, entitled “Policy-driven trends define European stainless market” addresses: How steelmakers’ selling price gains have slowed after six months of increasesUK stainless steel long product buyers’ concerns about planned import restrictionsThe stainless steel-consuming sectors providing pockets of strong demandMEPS outlook for stainless steel prices in Europe

Nordic steel prices are being supported by anticipated supply constraints and rising costs, MEPS’s latest Market in Minutes podcast reveals. Steel market analyst Adam Crookes joined MEPS managing editor Tom Sharpe to provide an 11-minute overview of the steel markets in Finland, Denmark, Norway and Sweden in the new episode.   Crookes said that steel demand had failed to live up to expectations during the first four months of the year. However, supply concerns have prompted a degree of restocking and some notable price increases. MEPS's Nordic hot rolled coil prices have risen by an average of more than 10% during the period.   Also discussed in the Nordic-themed Market in Minutes podcast are: Rising inflation and the risks it poses to a steel demand recoveryHow steelmakers’ delivery lead times indicate available capacity for certain productsLong products’ continued price rises amid increasing EAF production costs

Representatives from UK Steel and the Independent Steel Trade Association (ISTA) debated the possible repercussions of proposed steel import restrictions in the latest edition of MEPS’s Speaking of Steel podcast. ISTA president Godfrey Watt told MEPS that the Department for Business and Trade’s proposed July 1 cuts to tariff-free steel import quotas had provoked a “massive reaction” from steel traders. Meanwhile, UK Steel director general Gareth Stace described the new measures as “the biggest policy issue that I’ve come across”, adding: “I’m quite surprised that some commentators are throwing mud rather than saying what should happen so that whole steel supply chain is much more healthy in the future.”Listen to MEPS’s ‘Reshaping UK steel imports’ podcast, via YouTube, Spotify or Apple Podcasts, to hear the full debate, including:How TRQ reductions of up to 98% suggest UK steelmakers are ready to secure a record market share. The political aspect of TRQs: how EU and US trade relations could yet influence the availability of tariff-free imports. MEPS’s latest insight into UK steel buyers’ response to import quota reductions, including rising prices and a step back from new overseas orders.

MEPS’s new Speaking of Steel podcast debates whether demand from the United States construction sector will support surging long product prices during 2026.  Sarah Martin, associate director of forecasting at Dodge Construction Network, joins MEPS US steel market analysts Laura Hodges and Gary Sanders for the debate. The podcast episode, hosted by MEPS managing editor Tom Sharpe, can be accessed via YouTube, Spotify or Apple Podcasts.  Listen now to benefit from:  A US construction sector outlook, delivered by Sarah Martin, associate director of forecasting at Dodge Construction Network  Analysis of areas of strength and weakness in the US construction sector, and the outlook for steel demand  Discussion around the effect of US Section 232 tariffs on the supply of rebar and beams to the construction sector, and the upward pressure applied to prices  Consideration of the possible effects of the Middle East conflict on inflation and interest rates

Insight shared in MEPS’s new Market in Minutes podcast reveals that the UK steel market is at a crossroads, with tightening supply and rising prices expected in the months ahead.  Research conducted for MEPS’s European Steel Review found that anticipation of amendments to the United Kingdom’s steel import quotas and tariffs had prompted a significant rise in coil values during March. A new quota for Turkish-origin metallic coated sheet was subsequently implemented on April 1, with widespread quota cuts and a doubling of above-quota tariffs expected from July 1.  In the latest episode of Market in Minutes, which can be accessed via YouTube, Spotify or Apple Podcasts, MEPS head of research Stuart Gray joins managing editor Tom Sharpe to provide an update on trends in the UK steel market.  “The UK steel market is at crossroads right now,” Gray observed. “There is so much happening, so many influences on the prices researched and assessed by MEPS. It really is a very opportune time to deliver a market update.”  Among the themes discussed in the new Market in Minutes podcast, entitled “UK steel market at a crossroads”, are:  UK steel buyers’ anxiety over the effect of tightening import quotas on supply  How domestic steel production remains well below the country’s installed capacity  Improved UK manufacturing PMIs not reflected in demand from steel distributors  Growing concerns about the energy crisis triggered by the Middle East conflict  MEPS’s steel price outlook and the growing risks it must incorporate  Market in Minutes shares monthly insight into a specific steel market researched by MEPS’s research team. It forms part of the Speaking of Steel podcast series, which shares discussion among researchers and external guests on the factors influencing global steel prices.  Regular insight from the UK steel market is published in MEPS’s European Steel Review. The monthly publication features steel prices, price indices, market commentaries and six-month price forecasts for the UK, as well as Belgium, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. Contact MEPS to enquire for details about how to subscribe.

The US Supreme Court's move to quash the Trump administration’s “reciprocal” import tariffs left the 50% Section 232 tariffs on steel intact, but its effects could be far-reaching, a new MEPS podcast concludes.  Steel market analyst Laura Hodges and Jon Carruthers-Green join MEPS’s managing editor Tom Sharpe to discuss the future of US tariffs in the latest 30-minute episode of the Speaking of Steel podcast.   Watch or listen to the latest episode of the Speaking of Steel podcast via YouTube or Spotify to hear the tariff-themed discussion on:  The alternative trade measures that could replace the United States' IEEPA-based tariffs. How many previously agreed US trade deals are now “null and void”. Section 232 tariffs’ inflationary effect on US steel prices and the positive outcome for domestic steelmakers. The gap between US steel prices, and those in Europe and Asia, which is capping the scope for further increases.

A “disconnect” between Central Europe’s buoyant GDP growth forecasts and the reality of economic activity means that the region’s steel demand remains modest, MEPS’s latest Market in Minutes podcast reveals. Although the OECD forecasts that Poland will top the EU’s 2026 GDP growth ranking with an uptick of 3.4%, with Czechia’s 2% forecast also well above the eurozone average, there is little optimism among steel market participants.  “The consensus is that there's actually a slight disconnect in terms of the headline economic news that's relayed and what they are actually seeing in their day-to-day activities,” MEPS steel market analyst Chris Jackson concluded in the latest Market in Minutes episode.  However, Jackson told MEPS managing editor Tom Sharpe that a reduced supply of many products is driving prices higher. Energy price volatility resulting from the Middle East conflict may further accelerate steelmakers’ efforts to realise elevated selling prices in the days and weeks to come, he says.  Watch this month’s episode to learn more about developments in the Central European steel market, including:  CBAM’s influence on import volumes and the resulting upwards pressure on pricesA cold rolled coil price increase as an EU antidumping investigation tightens supplyA sharp increase in plate prices as rerollers’ cost pressures growHow domestic steel mills’ mixed productivity creates uncertaintyThe infrastructure projects providing modest expectations of increased demand

Southern Europe’s hot rolled coil values have risen by around EUR100 per tonne in seven months as buyers’ shifting supply options set a new price trend, MEPS’s latest Market in Minutes podcast reveals.  Market analyst Benedicte Mikolajczak draws on research conducted for MEPS’s European Steel Review to share insight on recent developments in the Italian and Spanish steel markets. She reveals that, despite subdued demand and a slow start to 2026, CBAM-related import supply uncertainty has allowed steelmakers and distributors to push up their selling prices. Listen now for more insight into the factors affecting steel supply, demand and the outlook for Southern Europe’s steel markets, including:  A potential supply imbalance as Southern Europe’s steelmakers ramp up production Distributors’ growing apprehension about selling stock as prices continue rising Importers’ attempts to seek out viable post-CBAM import sources How the region’s construction sector is offering some demand support after its auto sector bottomed out

The 45-minute discussion explores the key factors influencing steel demand, supply and prices across Europe, the United States and Asia at the start of 2026 and considers how they will shape the year ahead.  MEPS managing editor Tom Sharpe is joined by head of price analysis and forecasts Kaye Ayub and steel market analyst Michelle Kirton for the discussion, which draws from research conducted for MEPS’s Stainless Steel Review.  Listen now, via YouTube, Spotify or Apple Podcasts to hear MEPS’s discussion about:  January’s soaring nickel values and their effect on stainless steel prices in the months ahead Import purchases of which steel products have been rendered unviable by the EU’s emissions-based CBAM import taxes, and which remain attractive despite the added costs How increased trade restrictions are reshaping steel supply chains and threatening business models Whether improved demand and tighter supply might bring improved profits for steel suppliers in 2026

CBAM was described as “the opportunity EU steel mills have been crying out for” as MEPS panellists discussed the added cost of newly introduced emissions-based import taxes in the latest Speaking of Steel podcast. The European Commission’s December publication of the EU emissions benchmarks and country-specific default emissions values that are central to the calculation of CBAM taxes should have provided clarity to steel market participants. Instead, its 1,600 pages of documents left many in a continued state of uncertainty. In the latest instalment of the Speaking of Steel podcast, MEPS’s head of price analysis and forecasts, Kaye Ayub, joins steel market analyst Jon Carruthers-Green and managing editor Tom Sharpe to discuss the repercussions of CBAM import taxes implemented from January 1. The “counting the cost of carbon” episode of Speaking of Steel reveals: The cost of CBAM taxes on the EU’s most imported steel products.How high country-specific default emissions values have prompted mills’ race to verify their actual carbon output.The EU’s evolving carbon market: how CBAM costs will be influenced by the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS).Details of the CBAM methodology and how it might evolve.The European Commission’s role as a pioneer of emissions-based import taxes, and whether others might be encouraged to follow its lead.

Panellists on MEPS’s latest Speaking of Steel podcast have described how 2025’s top steel industry trends created a trading climate “defined by uncertainty” for many steel buyers.  MEPS’s head of price analysis and forecasts Kaye Ayub, head of research Stuart Gray and steel market analyst Jon Carruthers-Green join managing editor Tom Sharpe for the 45-minute long 2025 steel market review episode, which also reflects on the outlook for 2026.  Among the themes explored in the episode are:   The continued growth of steelmaking overcapacity and the surge in global trade protection measuresThe key drivers of an economic slowdown in China and Europe and their influence on steel prices International trade uncertainty triggered by President Trump’s Section 232 tariffs and the EU’s emissions-based CBAM taxes The outlook for 2026 and the potential risks that could stall any steel market recovery