Romania’s metallurgical industry, which used to be one of the key sectors in the country’s economy, reached a turnover of RON 33.5 billion (EUR 7.2 billion) last year, the lowest level in the last four years.

The trade with metallurgical products barely passed the level of RON 6 billion (EUR 1.3 billion) in 2016. By comparison, the turnover in the metallurgy sector exceeded RON 34 billion in 2013 and the trade with metallurgical products reached RON 6.6 billion that year.

The business decline is related to the disappearance of more than 100 companies in the market over the past 3 years, and a drop in the number of specialists, according to a Keysfin study. The Romanian economy had 7,694 companies in the metallurgy sector in 2014. Two years later, the number of companies amounted to 7,592.

About 124,600 people were working in this sector in 2013. The number dropped to 119,000 in 2016.

Steel producer ArcelorMittal Galati, aluminum producer Alro Slatina, and steel pipe maker Silcotub Zalau were the top three companies in the local metallurgical sector in 2016.

editor@romania-insider.com