Ukrainian companies reduced their consumption of rolled metal products by 0.96% in January–April of this year compared to the same period last year, down to 1,187,400 tons.
According to a press release from the Ukrmetallurgprom association, 506,400 tons were imported during this period, accounting for 42.65% of the domestic rolled metal consumption market.
According to Ukrmetallurgprom, in January–April 2026, Ukrainian steel companies produced 1.802 million tons of rolled steel (90.9% of the figure for the same period in 2025), of which, according to the State Customs Service of Ukraine, approximately 1.121 million tons, or 62.2%, were exported. In January–April 2025, the export share was 62.3% (1.234 million tons out of a total rolled steel production of 1.982 million tons).
The share of semi-finished products in export shipments in January–April 2026 was 39.25%, which is higher than the figure for the same period in 2025 (32.06%). The share of flat products in export shipments in January–April 2026 significantly exceeds the figure for January–April 2025 (51.29% and 44.89%, respectively). The share of long products, however, is significantly lower than in January–March 2025 (9.46% in 2026 versus 19.04% in 2025).
The import structure in January–April 2026 is characterized by a significant dominance of flat products over long products (61.99% and 25.38%, respectively), however, in January–April 2025, the dominance of flat products over long products was significantly greater (78.86% and 19.12%, respectively).
“In January–April 2026, the domestic market capacity was 1,187,400 tons of rolled steel, of which 506,400 tons, or 42.65%, were imports. In January–April 2025, the domestic market capacity was 1,198,900 tons, of which 450,900 tons, or 37.61%, were imported. Thus, in January–April 2026, there was a 0.96% decrease in domestic market capacity compared to January–April 2025, accompanied by a 4.95% increase in the share of imports,” the press release states.
According to the State Customs Service, the main export markets for Ukrainian rolled metal in January–April were European Union countries (80.2%), other European countries (10.9%), and the CIS (6.3%).
Among metallurgical importers, other European countries rank first (50.4%), followed by Asian countries (20.4%), and EU-27 countries (17.5%).
As reported, Ukraine’s rolled metal market in 2025 increased by 21.73% compared to 2024—to 4.016 million tons. A total of 1.6036 million tons were imported, accounting for 40.07% of the domestic rolled metal consumption market.
Ukraine’s rolled metal market in 2024 shrank by 6.26% compared to the previous year—to 3.2884 million tons, while in 2023 it increased 2.19-fold compared to 2022—to 3.5056 million tons.
