A group of analysts at EPS International Ltd predicts record stainless steel production in 2019 and 2020.
According to MEPS, global crude stainless steel production is projected to reach a record high of 52.1 million tons this year. This implies an increase of 3% compared with the record level of production achieved in 2018. In addition, MEPS predicts a further increase in global production in 2020. It is likely that production will reach a new record of 54.2 million tons next year.
The increase in world production is mainly due to production in China, which is projected to grow by more than 6% compared to the previous year and reach 28.3 million tons in 2019, which is more than 54% of world production. It is also projected that in 2020, production in China will grow by another 5%. Meanwhile, stainless steel production in India is expected to grow by 3% in 2019 to 3.875 million tons this year. MEPS predicts a 3% increase in production next year.
In contrast, U.S. crude stainless steel production is likely to decline by almost 3% in 2019 to 2.725 million tons. South Korean production in 2019 may fall by 4%, while it is expected that production in Japan and Taiwan will decrease by about 10% each. However, a moderate recovery is expected next year in all of these countries.
