European Foundry Industry Sentiment improves in July 2026, but recovery remains uneven. FISI rises to 96.0 as Eurozone manufacturing continues to expand.
The European foundry industry recorded a further improvement in business sentiment in July 2026. The European Foundry Industry Sentiment Indicator (FISI), published monthly by EFF – European Foundry Federation. increased to 96.0 points, confirming the gradual stabilisation observed in recent months. Nevertheless, the indicator remains below the benchmark level of 100, showing that the recovery of the European foundry sector is still fragile and highly uneven across individual casting segments.
The development of FISI should also be viewed against the background of a slowly improving European manufacturing environment. The Eurozone Manufacturing PMI reached 52.0 points in July, remaining above the critical threshold of 50 and therefore signalling an expansion of manufacturing activity.
At the same time, the Business Climate Indicator (BCI) stood at -0.19, remaining in negative territory despite the improvement in manufacturing activity. The combination of a PMI above 50 and a still-negative BCI illustrates the mixed economic environment facing European industry: production activity is recovering, but companies remain cautious about demand, investment and future business conditions.
Iron foundries improve, but expectations weaken
The situation in European iron foundries improved noticeably in July. The assessment of the current business situation increased by 1.4 points to 100.0 index points. This is an encouraging signal, bringing the assessment of current conditions back to the benchmark level. However, expectations for the next six months moved in the opposite direction, decreasing by 1.1 points to 85.3.
The divergence between improving current conditions and weakening expectations indicates that iron foundries remain cautious about the sustainability of the recovery. Demand from major customer industries remains uneven, and companies continue to operate in an environment characterized by uncertainty regarding future orders, industrial investment and production volumes.
Steel foundries remain the weakest segment
The steel casting sector continues to face the most difficult market conditions among the major European foundry segments. In July, the assessment of the current business situation of European steel foundries increased only marginally, by 0.1 point to 74.3 index points. At the same time, expectations for the next six months decreased by 1.3 points to 97.6 points.
The very low assessment of the current situation confirms that steel foundries continue to struggle with weak demand and insufficient capacity utilization. Although expectations remain significantly above the assessment of present conditions, their decline in July suggests that companies are becoming somewhat more cautious about the pace of a future recovery.
Non-ferrous foundries remain the strongest part of the industry
The situation is considerably more positive in the European non-ferrous foundry sector. In July 2026, the assessment of the current business situation increased by 1.3 points to 133.2 index points. At the same time, expectations for the next six months improved strongly, rising by 2.9 points to 149.0.
Non-ferrous foundries therefore remain by far the strongest segment of the European foundry industry. Both current conditions and expectations are substantially above the benchmark level.
The segment continues to benefit from structural demand connected with lightweight components, electrification, energy technologies and advanced industrial applications. The July results show that non-ferrous foundries continue to demonstrate considerably greater resilience than the ferrous casting sectors.
European manufacturing recovery offers cautious optimism
The Eurozone Manufacturing PMI of 52.0 in July provides an important positive signal for foundries. A PMI above 50 indicates expanding manufacturing activity and suggests that the broader industrial environment is gradually becoming more supportive.
This follows the stabilization already observed in the European foundry sector in June, when EFF reported the first meaningful improvement in business sentiment after several challenging months. However, the July figures show that the recovery has not yet translated into equally strong confidence across all foundry segments.
European foundries remain exposed to weak and uneven demand from key customer industries, high energy and production costs, geopolitical uncertainty and increasing global competition. EFF has also highlighted the importance of creating a level playing field for European foundries in the context of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). The Federation has warned that the current framework risks increasing the cost of imported raw materials while leaving many imported finished foundry products outside the mechanism’s scope. This imbalance represents a significant competitiveness challenge for an energy-intensive European industry already facing strong competition from third-country producers.
Outlook: stabilization, but no broad-based recovery yet
The July 2026 FISI results provide grounds for cautious optimism. The rise of the overall indicator to 96.0, combined with a Manufacturing PMI of 52.0, suggests that the European industrial economy is moving in a more positive direction.
However, the BCI of -0.19 and the significant differences between individual foundry segments demonstrate that a broad-based recovery has not yet been achieved.
The contrast is particularly striking: non-ferrous foundries report very strong current conditions and expectations, while steel foundries continue to operate at historically weak levels. Iron foundries are experiencing an improvement in their current situation, but their expectations for the coming six months remain subdued.
For the European foundry industry, the coming months will therefore be decisive. A sustainable recovery will depend on stronger order intake from key customer sectors, continued improvement in European manufacturing, competitive energy prices and an EU industrial and trade policy capable of protecting the competitiveness of European production.
European foundries are strategically important suppliers to the automotive, machinery, energy, railway, aerospace, defense, construction and infrastructure sectors. Maintaining a competitive European foundry industry is therefore essential not only for individual companies, but also for resilient European industrial supply chains and Europe’s long-term industrial sovereignty.
The FISI – European Foundry Industry Sentiment Indicator – is the earliest available composite indicator providing information on the European foundry industry performance. It is published by EFF every month and is based on survey responses of the European foundry industry. The EFF members are asked to give their assessment of the current business situation in the foundry sector and their expectations for the next six months.
The BCI – Business Climate Indicator – is an indicator published by the European Commission. The BCI evaluates development conditions of the manufacturing sector in the euro area every month and uses five balances of opinion from industry survey: production trends, order books, export order books, stocks and production expectations.
Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) - in the Euro area is an indicator of the economic health of the manufacturing sector. It is based on such indicators as: new orders, inventory levels, production, supplier deliveries and the employment environment.
Please find the chart enclosed or combined with additional information at eff-eu.org/.
Background information on EFF:
EFF is the umbrella organisation of the national European foundry associations. The organisation, founded in 1953, has 22 European member states and works to promote the economical, technical, legal and social interests of the European foundry industry. At the same time, EFF implements activities which aim at developing national foundry industries and co-ordinating their shared international interests. The General Secretariat is situated in Düsseldorf since 1997.
EFF represents 4 400 European foundries. Nearly 260 000 employees are generating a turnover of 39 billion Euro. European foundries are recruiting 20 000 workers and engineers per year. The main customer industries are e.g. the automotive, the general engineering and the building industries as well as the electrical engineering industry. No industrial sector exists without using casted components.
Further information at eff-eu.org
___________________________________________________________________
EFF Contact:
Witold Dobosz
EFF – European Foundry Federation
mail: info@eff-eu.org
________________________________________
