Indonesia Stainless Steel Output Falls? How is the Local NPI Supply?

SHANGHAI, Nov 22 (SMM) - A large-sized stainless steel plant in Indonesia reduced the production due to the weak domestic and overseas demand in November. It is estimated that the output in November may decline about 80,000 mt, The production reduction may continue in December and the amount of reduced output is unknown.

According to the SMM survey, there is a shortage of NPI in Indonesia, which is consistent with the NPI balance calculated by SMM. Since August 2022, the Indonesia NPI supply was tight. Although there was a shortage of raw materials in the early stage, the production was not reduced as there were still stocks available for consumption. The import volume of Indonesia NPI was greatly increased in August and September as enterprises purchased in advance to avoid the tariff imposed by Indonesia. However, due to the invisible inventory and the stockpiling in the early stage, the NPI available in the market was still insufficient in August October. If this large-sized stainless steel plant reduces the production as expected, the stainless steel in November will be in a small surplus.

At present, due to high costs and weak consumption, most domestic stainless steel plants suffered losses for nearly a month. Therefore, they timely undertook maintenance and reduced the production. However, due to the rainy season, the decline in output was relatively limited. Meanwhile, Indonesia's tariff policy has not yet been fully implemented. If the tariff policy is still to be implemented as scheduled, the decline in the prices of NPI will be limited. The prices of stainless steel are still strongly supported by the cost, and are unlikly to fall sharply.