According to the statistics released by the French Ministry of Economy, Finance and Industry, in the first four months of this year France's basic steel product and ferroalloy exports amounted to a value of €3.57 billion, increasing by 2.7 percent year on year.
The cumulative value of France's steel product and ferroalloy exports has risen steadily since March 2010 on year-on-year basis. In the first four months of 2012, steel and ferroalloys ranked seventh among the most exported products of the country.
During the period in question, France exported €710 million of steel pipes and tubes - down 11 percent, €163 million of cold rolled steel strip - down 18 percent, €142 million of cold rolled steel bars - down 2.8 percent, €142 million of cold drawn wire - up 4.6 percent, €219 million of metal structures and parts - down 4.7 percent, all compared to January-April 2011.
Meanwhile, in the January-April period of this year France's basic steel product and ferroalloy imports totaled €3.38 billion, down 13 percent year on year.
During the given period, France imported €586 million of steel pipes and tubes - down 9.1 percent, €202 million of cold rolled steel strip - down 17.2 percent, €168 million of cold rolled steel bars - down 4.3 percent, €140 million of cold drawn wire - down 13.9 percent, and €454 million of metal structures and parts - down 2.3 percent, all compared to the same period of the previous year.