European steel producers are making strong efforts to push up prices in the flat products category in the final quarter of 2005 after cutting back on output over the past few months, according to metals consultancy MEPS International. MEPS are also forecasting EU price rises for most products in Spring next year. However, these could be threatened by a new wave of imports from Asia if the differential between the two regions selling values remains at near the 100 usd per tonne mark, the consultancy warns. In the long products sector, the hurricanes in the US pushed up scrap costs within the EU and further increases took place in early September. "This could lead to higher scrap surcharges for steel buyers in October," MEPS said in a report this morning. "However, we believe the peak has already been reached and scrap costs will decline over the next few months unless other natural catastrophes occur," MEPS added. MEPS forecasts rising steel prices for most long products in the short-term before falling over the next months into the Spring of next year. "Real demand from the construction and engineering segments is quite sluggish at the moment. However, we do anticipate an increase in prices when the weather improves and activity expands once again in 2006," the report added.