Even in war conditions and with a sharp reduction in production capacity, the large Polish market and its accessible logistics enabled Ukraine to increase its supply of metal products to the Polish market. Last year, Ukrainian steel exports to the country increased by 16% in natural terms (to 1.8 million tons) but decreased by 18% (to $1.1B) in monetary terms.
However, exports have not yet returned to pre-war levels – mainly raw materials and semi-finished products are now exported. The most massive export item is iron ore, the supply of which has decreased since 2021, but according to 2023’s results, foreign sales of iron ore amounted to 3.3 million tons worth $346M. In some segments, Ukrainian suppliers were able to partially replace products previously supplied from Russia.
Also, after the start of the war Ukraine sharply increased its scrap metal export to Poland – from 17,300 tons in 2021 to 160,600 tons last year. It is predicted that this indicator will grow to 500,000 tons.