2020 may have been a difficult year for the metalworking sector, but what's the situation today? We wanted to take advantage of this first news article on our website to give you an overview of the situation. What's the economic outlook for 2020? How do we see the future alongside you?
Metallurgy in 2020 and the Covid effect
In 2020, raw material prices in the metallurgy sector continued to rise, for a number of reasons. Steel prices are cyclical and impacted by a variety of factors. By the end of 2019, the steel market was already unstable. Since 2020, steel prices have gradually risen by an average of 10 to 40 %, depending on the product; some have even doubled in price, with considerable volatility! Delivery times have also lengthened by several months, with random delays. This situation was of course exacerbated by the Covid-19 health crisis, which forced several steel mills to close some of their blast furnaces. This market instability was compounded by staffing problems, with absences also linked to Covid.
Entreprise Giron, business review and outlook
Despite the impact of the health crisis on our business, we had a good year in 2020. Our sales and earnings fell slightly, but we kept our costs under control. Today, our order book is almost at the same level as in fiscal 2019, before the pandemic period. We are currently seeing a rebound in the economy, but we remain cautious by maintaining an adapted management approach.
As soon as the economic and health context stabilizes, we intend to continue to develop, in particular by upgrading our work tools to constantly improve our productivity. We must, however, factor into our strategy the soaring cost of raw materials. Prices are rising every day, and are no longer guaranteed by our suppliers in the medium or even short term.
We look forward to hearing from you
This increase in raw material prices is reflected in the prices we pass on to our customers. We can only stabilize our offers for very short periods of one or two weeks. Prices are still likely to rise in the coming weeks, but we expect the situation to improve soon. Indeed, European steel mills are looking forward to an imminent resumption of production and a return to normal supply lead times by the end of the year. We remain at your disposal to answer any questions you may have. Please do not hesitate to contact our customer service if you have any questions, whether about our products or the latest developments. We're always on the lookout for ways to bring you the best quality at the best price and the best service, just as we've been doing since Giron was founded in 1924!
Metallurgy and screen cloth: a sector that recruits
Proof of our company's good health, we are taking advantage of this communication to announce that we are looking for future employees!
As an SME specializing in the manufacture and marketing of steel and polyurethane screening cloths, we have a major need for manpower. We are looking for different types of profiles:
- qualified technicians in the construction or industrial sectors;
- unqualified but motivated people, whom we will train in-house on our production tools.
So don't hesitate to spread the word! We will consider all unsolicited applications we receive.