[Stainless Steel]Global Stainless Steel output set for small increase this year: MEPS

UNITED KINGDOM August 06 2015 9:07 AM

LONDON (Scrap Register): Global crude stainless steel production is predicted to reach a new record annual total of 42.2 million tons, in 2015, said MEPS International. This would exceed the previous high figure, set last year, by 1.2 percent.

According to MEPS, Chinese production, in 2015, is now expected to turn out at 22.15 million tons. This represents a year-on-year increase of 2.1 percent. Demand for stainless steel has been negatively affected by disappointing consumption, at home and abroad, as well as by antidumping measures in Europe.

After recovering, in 2014, to record a year-on-year increase of 5 percent, to 3.33 million tons, Japanese output is predicted to fall back by 3 percent, this year, to total 3.23 million tons.

We forecast an annual outturn of 1.17 million tons, in Taiwan. While this represents a 5.2 percent advance on last year’s number, it is almost 65 percent less than the peak figure, achieved in 2006.

South Korea’s output has also slightly exceeded expectations during the early part of this year. MEPS forecasts 2.08 million tons – an increase of 2.8 percent over last year’s total.

The prediction for annual crude stainless steel output in the United States remains at 2.4 million tons. This equates to a 0.4 percent increase, compared with the 2014 total.

EU production has been below previous expectations during the first half of 2015, despite reduced competition from imports from the Far East. Our forecast for this year’s total outturn is 7.18 million tons, which would be nearly one percent less than the 2014 figure.