In brief

• Deliveries of ribbed rebar from Ukraine to Poland rose from under 10 thousand tonnes in 2022 to over 140 thousand tonnes in the period from August 2024 to July 2025.
• The flow has reversed: Polish steelworks have started exporting rebar to Ukraine, so far in small batches.
• Ukraine has lost about 60 percent of its pre-war production capacity, and rebar prices in Poland have started to rise, ranging from 2.86 to 2.99 thousand PLN per tonne.

Change in the direction of deliveries

Not long ago, Polish producers were raising the alarm about the influx of Ukrainian steel. Deliveries of ribbed construction rebar from Ukraine to Poland rose from under 10 thousand tonnes in 2022 to over 140 thousand tonnes in the period from August 2024 to July 2025 (Trend się odwrócił. Ten towar płynie teraz z Polski na Ukrainę – RMF24). The direction of goods flow has now reversed (Ukraińska stal nie zalewa już naszego rynku. Polskie huty eksportują na wschód – interia.pl).

The president of the Cognor group, Przemysław Sztuczkowski, reported that Polish steelworks have started exporting rebar to Ukraine. The first batches are small, but the company is receiving many requests for trade offers.

Cause: destroyed plants

The change results from Russian attacks on Ukrainian steel plants. Ukraine has lost about 60 percent of its pre-war production capacity, so it must import steel from abroad. Polish producers are reacting cautiously to this situation, because rebuilding Ukraine's industry also means a new sales market for them.

Prices going up

After several years of stagnation, rebar prices have started to rise. According to PUDS data, they currently cost from about 2.86 to nearly 2.99 thousand PLN per tonne. If the increase persists, they will exceed 3 thousand PLN. The president of Cognor expressed hope that higher prices will hold not only thanks to growing orders from Ukraine.

For construction in Poland, this means that cheap imports, which had been lowering prices, are no longer the dominant source of supply, and domestic steelworks may benefit from greater demand.