According to report released by the Germany-based service center Damstahl, the European stainless steel output dropped slightly to 4.1 million tons in the first half of this year.
It's analyzed the distributors and end users in the region delayed the purchase in the first half of this year as nickel prices continued falling in the given period of time, making the European stainless steel production decrease.
Meanwhile, the report also forecasted that the consumption of stainless steel products from the certain sectors such as automobile and home appliance in the Europe would be lower than the level in a year earlier during the third quarter through fourth quarter.
Therefore, the European steel mills will continue to reducing input costs in order to fight against the weak market.