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Italy Steel Output Falls 3.5% in August as Flat Products Rebound 30%
Italian crude steel production fell to 793,000 tonnes in August 2026, down 3.5% year over year, while output for the first eight months remained 2.4% above 2025 levels. Long products weakened sharply, but flat steel rebounded 30.3% from a depressed year-earlier base.
By Paul Ploumis
Published September 22, 2026
Italy Steel Market Snapshot
| Measure | August 2026 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Crude steel | 793,000 tonnes | ↓ 3.5% YoY |
| Long products | 395,000 tonnes | ↓ 10.2% YoY |
| Flat products | 374,000 tonnes | ↑ 30.3% YoY |
| Jan.–Aug. crude steel | 13.9 million tonnes | ↑ 2.4% YoY |
SCRAPMONSTER EDGE
August’s 53.2% drop from July looks dramatic, but it is almost identical to last year’s seasonal pattern. Italian crude steel output fell about 52.4% from July to August 2025. That suggests the sharp monthly decline is largely seasonal rather than evidence of a sudden collapse in underlying production.
SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): Italy produced 793,000 tonnes of crude steel in August 2026, down 3.5% from the same month last year, according to Federacciai data.
Output was also sharply lower than July’s 1.696 million tonnes, but the month-to-month drop should be viewed in the context of Italy’s normal August slowdown. Production also fell by more than half between July and August in 2025.
Despite the August decline, Italian steel production remained ahead of last year on a cumulative basis. Output for January through August reached approximately 13.9 million tonnes, up 2.4% year over year.
Long and Flat Steel Move in Opposite Directions
The August data showed a sharp divergence between the two major hot-rolled product groups.
Long-product output totaled 395,000 tonnes, down 10.2% from August 2025.
Flat-product output, by contrast, rose 30.3% year over year to 374,000 tonnes.
That created a 40.5-percentage-point gap between the annual performance of flat and long products in August.
The flat-product rebound also requires context: August 2025 had recorded a 31% year-over-year decline, making the latest comparison unusually favorable.
Year-to-Date Trend Tells a Different Story
Over the first eight months of 2026, long products remained the stronger segment.
Long-product output reached about 8.4 million tonnes, up 5.2% from the same period of 2025.
Flat-product output remained below year-earlier levels, falling 2.4% over the January-August period.
Federacciai’s figures reported through Italian news agency ANSA put cumulative flat-product output at about 5.7 million tonnes. SteelOrbis reported the same trend at approximately 5.8 million tonnes, reflecting a small source-rounding difference.
August Slowdown Mirrors 2025 Seasonal Pattern
The July-to-August decline is striking in absolute terms, but historical context changes the interpretation.
| Period | July Output | August Output | Monthly Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 1.696M tonnes | 793,000 tonnes | ↓ 53.2% |
| 2025 | 1.727M tonnes | 822,000 tonnes | ↓ 52.4% |
The similarity suggests that Italy’s August production pattern continues to be heavily influenced by seasonal shutdowns and reduced summer operating schedules.
2025 Production Had Recovered
Italy produced approximately 20.7 million tonnes of crude steel in 2025, up 3.6% from 2024.
Long-product output increased 5.5% to 12.3 million tonnes, while flat-product production rose 3.8% to 8.9 million tonnes.
The 2026 year-to-date increase therefore builds on the recovery recorded last year, although the latest monthly data show a clear slowdown in July and August.
Taranto Shutdown Adds Uncertainty to the Outlook
The near-term production outlook also faces uncertainty around the former Ilva steelworks in Taranto, Italy’s largest integrated steel facility.
On September 11, the Milan Court of Appeal rejected a request by Acciaierie d’Italia and Ilva in extraordinary administration to suspend an earlier order requiring the hot area of the Taranto plant to stop operating by October 28.
The court’s decision followed proceedings focused on asbestos and fine-particle emissions. The ruling came after the August production period covered by the latest Federacciai data, so it does not explain the August decline.
However, the shutdown timetable could become relevant to Italian crude steel and flat-product supply in subsequent months because Taranto is the country’s principal integrated blast-furnace steelmaking site.
Market Read
The August headline looks weaker than the broader production trend.
Crude steel output was down 3.5% year over year and fell by more than half from July, but the month-to-month plunge closely matched the seasonal drop recorded a year earlier. Meanwhile, year-to-date production remained 2.4% above 2025.
The more important structural signal is the product mix. Long products weakened in August but remained stronger year to date, while flat products posted a sharp monthly rebound from a weak comparison base even though cumulative output was still lower.
For steel buyers, mills and scrap-market participants, the next test will be whether production rebounds after the August seasonal slowdown and how the Taranto shutdown timetable affects Italy’s output mix later in the year.
What to Watch Next
- September crude steel output: whether production rebounds from the seasonal August low.
- Flat-product recovery: whether the 30.3% August increase continues beyond the weak year-earlier comparison.
- Long-product demand: whether the 5.2% year-to-date gain can be maintained.
- Taranto: implementation of the October 28 hot-area shutdown order and any subsequent legal or industrial developments.
- Scrap demand: whether changes in Italian steelmaking activity affect ferrous scrap consumption and regional buying conditions.
