European steel industry in a deep crisis

The European steel industry is in a deep crisis. Several large corporations have already announced multiple dismissions due to excess capacity and reduction of markets. The entire branch of Europe is currently awaiting a complete reorganization. Almost all metallurgical companies in Europe currently suffer huge losses.

The European steel industry has been suffering from a decrease in demand for more than 2 years.
At first, the global economic crisis in 2008 the demand for steel decreased by almost 30 percent. The latest data is not convinced that the trend will be the opposite. In the first half of 2013, the demand for steel in the EU decreased by 5.7 percent. The United States remains one of the most important steel markets, but a decrease in demand by 5.6 percent does not inspire optimism. These data were recently provided by Adyatia Mittal, the financial director of the world's largest steel manufacturer Arcelormittal.

In connection with the fall of demand, excess capacity has grown greatly in recent years. According to the OECD, current production capacities in the EU exceeds demand by more than a third. A decrease in demand occurred mainly due to a sharp drop in activity by two large customers of metallurgy of construction and automotive industry.

This is a decrease in not only a consequence of the economic crisis, but also the result of a policy of strict savings in the European Union. Orders for the construction industry in southern Europe are practically absent. In past years, many orders came from the state and were funded from the state budget. It is clear that the number of families can afford a new home much less than before.

The decrease in the incomes of the population had an even more catastrophic impact on the automotive industry. So, car sales in Europe last year have been the lowest since 1995, and continue to fall this year: in the first half of 2013, a drop in 6.7 percent was recorded compared to the same period last year.

In the light of these numbers, the European steel industry is preparing for a large -scale restructuring program associated with a direct reduction in jobs, wages and social benefits. Arcelormittal has already closed factories in Belgium, France and Spain. Now, the closure is threatened with a metallurgical plant in liege, Belgium, once one of the largest and oldest steel enterprises in Europe. In the south of Italy, the ILVA Taranto Plant is also a candidate for closing.

In Germany, the largest metallurgical companies, Thyssenkrupp and Salzgitter, also announced plans for mass layouts. About 150 thousand workers around the world currently operate on Thyssenkrupp, and he suffers from large losses of his subsidiary in South America, in addition to