Trade with Greece
52
Steel
In steel, prices remain stable following an
increase during the second half of the year, while,
as a result of the crisis, the companies are shift-
ing their attention to overseas markets, especial-
ly those in the wider region of the south-eastern
Mediterranean and North Africa. International
demand shows encouraging signs of recovery,
while the increase in iron prices has a positive
effect on the Greek steel industry’s gross profit
margins.
However, this improvement did not suffice to
restore profitability, at least in the case of the
nine-month results of ASE-listed Sidenor. The
same stands, according to market estimates, in
the cases of non-listed Hellenic Halyvourgia and
Halyvourgiki. Owing, though, to the great uncer-
tainty in this market, no forecasts are made for
2011.
New impetus
The
global steel market
is sending sanguine
messages to Greek conglomerates, which expect
increased gains in 2011, following a year (2010)
when all players focused on enhancing their
export profile.
The market sees
significant improvement
,
mainly in Central European markets, which leads
to increased demand for
high added-value
products
. More specifically, the recovery of
Central European markets is translated into
increased sales of special types of steel used in
