According to the data provided by the Spanish steel producers' association Unesid, Spain's crude steel output in 2012 totaled 13.6 million mt, decreasing by 12 percent compared to 2011. The association said that during most months in 2012 year-on-year declines in output exceeding 10 percent were observed in Spain, while a stable crude steel output was recorded in December year on year. However, the year-on-year crude steel output decreases have been more moderate in the current year, with six percent in January and two percent in February. Spanish stainless steel production, however, grew by 4.5 percent in 2012 compared to 2011, amounting to 844,000 mt.
Deliveries of steel products in Spain have roughly followed the same trend as crude steel production, falling 11 percent year on year in 2012 to 14.1 million mt. According to Unesid, this decrease was caused by a 20 percent drop in deliveries to the domestic market. Apparent consumption of steel products in Spaiin fell by 19 percent year on year, amounting to 10.6 million mt in 2012. In 2012, Spain consumed 3.8 million mt of long products, falling by 22 percent, and 6.3 million mt of flat products, down 16 percent, both on year-on-year basis.
In 2012, Spanish steel product imports fell by 13 percent on volume basis to 7.8 million mt, and by 15 percent on value basis, both year on year. The decline was far superior in steel product imports from non-EU countries which saw a 33.2 percent year-on-year decrease. In contrast, the decline in imports from EU countries in the given year was six percent as compared to 2011. In 2012, the country's steel product exports fell only 2.2 percent in volume compared to 2011, amounting to 9.7 million mt. Steel exports to the EU in 2012 decreased by 12 percent, while exports to non-EU countries in the given year were up 11 percent to 4.6 million mt, both compared to the previous year.