According to the statistics released by the French Ministry of Economy, Finance and Industry, in January this year France's basic steel product and ferroalloy exports amounted to a value of €813 million, decreasing by 8.6 percent year on year.
France's steel product and ferroalloy export value has been on a downtrend on year-on-year basis since August last year, with a growing decrease rate. Steel and ferroalloys ranked eighth in January among the most exported products of the country while air and space crafts was the sector with the highest export value in January with $3.6 billion.
During the month in question, France exported €198 million of steel pipes and tubes - up 14.5 percent, €40.5 million of cold rolled steel strip - up 5.2 percent, €34.7 million of cold drawn wire - remaining stable, €28.1 million of cold rolled steel bars - down 19.4 percent, €40.7 million of metal structures and parts - down 9.5 percent, all compared to January 2012.
Meanwhile, in January this year France's basic steel product and ferroalloy imports totaled €663 million, down 14.6 percent year on year.
During the given month, France imported €141 million of steel pipes and tubes - down 3.6 percent, €50 million of cold rolled steel strip - up 1.8 percent, €34 million of cold rolled steel bars - down 22.2 percent, €30 million of cold drawn wire - down 19.5 percent, and €97 million of metal structures and parts - down 12.5 percent, all compared to the previous year.