Market evolution: Steel containers under 300L (CN 7310) — 2015–2025

Introduction

This report analyses the EU's external trade in steel containers of up to 300 litres capacity (Combined Nomenclature code 7310) over the period 2015–2025. The product heading covers a broad family of industrial and consumer packaging — drums, cans, boxes, and similar vessels made of iron or steel — and encompasses three subcategories: containers of 50–300 litres (731010), soldering/crimping cans under 50 litres (731021), and other containers under 50 litres (731029). For full product definitions and context, see the overview page.

The period under review spans several macro-economic shocks — from the post-2015 commodity downturn through the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 to the energy and steel-price inflation that surged in 2022. Throughout this decade, the EU remained a net exporter of steel containers, but the structure of its trade underwent notable change: volumes softened while values climbed, import sources diversified, and the EU's own production base contracted even as trade openness intensified. The following three sections unpack these dynamics in detail.

1. Resilient Value Growth Amid Declining Volumes: A Market Shaped by Rising Unit Prices

1.1 The EU maintained a structural trade surplus throughout the period

The EU consistently exported more steel containers than it imported. The trade balance in value terms started at €264.8 million in 2015 and stood at €252.4 million in 2025 — a modest decline of 4.7%. Detailed trade flows can be explored here.

The headline pattern is clear: value grew substantially while volumes were broadly flat or declining. Export value rose 17.7% even as tonnage fell by 10.1%; import value rose 32.7% on only 2.7% more tonnage. The entire increase in trade value was therefore driven by higher unit prices.

1.2 The 2020 dip was short-lived; the 2022 spike was the defining event

The COVID-19 year of 2020 marked the cycle's trough in export value (€595.5 million) and brought import volumes down modestly. However, the recovery was swift: by 2021, export volumes had surged to 214,940 tonnes — the highest of the entire period — likely reflecting restocking and pent-up demand across European manufacturing.

The most striking event, however, was 2022. Export value leapt to €907.5 million (the period maximum) and import value reached €625.3 million, both driven by sharp price increases. Export unit prices averaged €4,492/tonne in 2022 versus €3,350/tonne in 2021, a jump of roughly 34%. This aligns with the broader European steel-price surge of 2022, fuelled by energy cost spikes, supply-chain bottlenecks and, for the EU, the disruption of Russian and Ukrainian steel supplies.

By 2025, export prices had climbed further to a period-high of €4,618/tonne, while volumes had retreated to their lowest point (168,205 tonnes). Import prices similarly reached their apex at €4,037/tonne. The market has thus structurally shifted: fewer tonnes are crossing borders, but each tonne is worth considerably more.

1.3 Price shocks were concentrated in export markets to North and West Africa

The shock-detection analysis reveals that the most abnormal price movements occurred in EU exports to developing markets, not in core European trade lanes:

For the full shock analysis, see the supply-shocks dashboard. These price jumps likely reflect a combination of global steel inflation and reduced competition in African markets as alternative suppliers (notably Russia and Ukraine) became constrained.

2. Evolving Trade Partnerships: Import Diversification and a Shifting Export Landscape

2.1 The EU's import base became markedly less concentrated

The Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI) for import value fell from 2,286 in 2015 to 1,722 in 2025, a decline of 24.7%. Concentration metrics over time are available here. An HHI above 2,500 is generally considered highly concentrated; the EU moved from near that threshold into a moderately concentrated range, indicating meaningful diversification of supply sources.

Partner-level detail is available here.

The United Kingdom remained the EU's single largest import source throughout the period, but its share eroded. More striking is the rise of Türkiye, whose exports of steel containers to the EU more than doubled in value from €38.0 million to €83.2 million. This growth likely reflects both Türkiye's competitive cost base in steel processing and its geographic proximity to EU markets. China similarly grew, from €106.6 million to €138.3 million, and at times peaked even higher (the period maximum was €211.3 million). The United States nearly doubled its presence, rising from €15.9 million to €31.2 million.

By contrast, Russia — never a large supplier — saw its position decline further following the 2022 sanctions regime, with import volatility from that partner being among the highest (coefficient of variation of 0.56). Volatility comparisons can be explored here.

2.2 Export destinations shifted, with Switzerland emerging as a major growth market

The EU's export HHI rose modestly from 964 to 1,101 (+14.3%), indicating a slight increase in concentration. This was driven by the rapid growth of a few key markets:

The most dramatic shift was the surge in exports to Switzerland, which grew from €43.8 million to €122.7 million — a 180% increase — making it the EU's second-largest export destination by 2025. This may partly reflect re-export or transit trade dynamics, given Switzerland's role as a logistics hub. Norway and Morocco also roughly doubled as export markets. The United States, while still the fourth-largest destination, saw a slight decline of 11.5%.

On the import side, the United Kingdom remained the EU's top partner for exports as well, growing 30.6% to €181.7 million — a testament to the deep supply-chain integration between the EU and UK in steel packaging, which has survived the post-Brexit trade friction largely intact.

2.3 Within the EU, Italy and the Netherlands gained export weight as Germany's share declined

At the member-state level, the internal redistribution of export capacity is noteworthy:

Member-state export data is available here.

Germany remained the largest EU exporter but lost significant ground, with its share of EU exports falling from roughly 32% to 20%. Italy overtook it by some measures, nearly doubling its export value to €169.6 million. The Netherlands and Portugal both more than doubled their exports. The specialisation analysis confirms this: Italy, Spain and Portugal all show revealed comparative advantage (RCA > 1) in this product, with Portugal's RSCA at 0.48 and Italy's at 0.28. See the full specialisation rankings here.

On the import side, France saw the largest increase among major EU importers, growing 84.5% from €54.2 million to €100.0 million, while Belgium's imports contracted sharply by 62.7%, potentially reflecting shifts in intra-EU logistics or the relocation of filling and packaging operations.

3. A Sector in Transition: Falling EU Production and Increasing Trade Openness

3.1 EU production volumes fell sharply even as production value rose

EU domestic production of steel containers (CN 7310) declined steeply in volume terms over the period, while rising in value:

Production volume trends are shown here.

The 30% decline in the number of items produced — against a 10.3% rise in their total value — implies that the average value per item increased by roughly 58% over the decade. This is consistent with the broader pattern of price inflation observed in trade data, but it may also reflect a compositional shift towards higher-value container types (e.g., specialised industrial drums versus commodity food cans).

3.2 Trade intensity surged, signalling deeper integration with global markets

Two indicators capture the EU's increasing openness in this sector:

Vulnerability indicators are detailed here.

Trade intensity — the share of total EU apparent consumption that is traded with non-EU partners — rose from 9.2% to 15.5%, meaning that the EU's steel-container market became considerably more exposed to international flows. Export propensity (exports as a share of production) rose from 6.6% to 9.9%, indicating that EU producers increasingly relied on external markets.

Importantly, the EU remained a net exporter throughout (net import reliance was negative), though the margin narrowed slightly. The declining production base, combined with growing import penetration from Türkiye and China, suggests that the EU's competitive advantage in this sector, while still present, is under gradual pressure.

3.3 Product-segment dynamics reveal divergent paths for food cans versus industrial containers

The three subcategories within CN 7310 followed distinct trajectories:

Imports by subcategory (value, €M):

Exports by subcategory (value, €M):

The 50–300 litre segment (731010) showed the most dramatic import growth: imports nearly tripled in value from €64.9 million in 2015 to a peak of €157.6 million in 2022, with volumes also surging (from 28,008 tonnes to 59,206 tonnes). This likely reflects growing demand for industrial drums and larger containers from sectors such as chemicals, lubricants and food ingredients — segments where EU domestic capacity may have been insufficient. By 2025, both volume and value had retreated, with import prices reaching €3,317/tonne, the highest for this subcategory.

The soldering/crimping cans segment (731021) — which is closely tied to food and beverage packaging — showed an anomalous spike in import volumes in 2018 (105,073 tonnes at an unusually low average price of €1,143/tonne), before returning to more typical levels. This likely reflects a one-off bulk procurement event. Excluding that anomaly, this segment has been relatively stable, with export prices rising from around €3,000/tonne to over €4,300/tonne.

The other small-container segment (731029) remained the largest by both import and export value, and showed the highest export unit prices (reaching €5,834/tonne in 2022 and €5,096/tonne in 2025), consistent with more specialised or higher-specification containers.

Subcategory comparisons are available here.

Conclusion

The EU's trade in steel containers under 300 litres (CN 7310) over 2015–2025 tells a story of value resilience masking volume softness. Total export value grew by 17.7% and import value by 32.7%, but almost the entirety of that growth was driven by rising unit prices — themselves a reflection of steel and energy cost inflation, particularly the 2022 spike. Physical trade volumes peaked earlier (2021 for exports, 2018 for imports) and have since been on a declining trend.

Structurally, the market is becoming more open and more competitive. EU production volumes fell by 30%, while trade intensity rose from 9.2% to 15.5% and export propensity from 6.6% to 9.9%. Import sources diversified significantly, with Türkiye and China capturing growing shares. Within the EU, the centre of gravity in export capacity shifted southward and westward — from Germany towards Italy, Portugal and the Netherlands.

The EU nonetheless retained a positive trade balance throughout and a degree of revealed comparative advantage, particularly among southern and eastern member states. The key question going forward is whether declining production volumes represent a structural contraction or a rationalisation towards higher-value segments. With import competition intensifying and trade intensity at record levels, the answer will depend on EU producers' ability to sustain their position in the higher-margin segments of this market.