Stainless steel demand will grow 3 percent annually until 2019

Global demand for stainless steel products aims to reach 38.0 million tonnes this year and 39.2 million tonnes in 2017. Global consumption expects a CAGR of about 3 percent from 2016 to 2019, Finnish stainless steel maker Outokumpu said in its 2015 annual report.

Global demand for stainless steel products reached 37.7 million tonnes in 2015, with a modest increase of about 2 percent from 37.1 million tonnes in 2014. The slowdown in growth was most pronounced in the regions of America, in China, which resulted in weak demand growth in 2015 compared to previous years, Outokumpu clarifies.

End-user, chemical, petrochemical and energy segments reduced stainless steel use by 2 percent amid retreating oil prices, while consumer, automotive, transportation and medical segments were more resilient, with a 3 percent increase in 2015. compared to 2014.

The consumer, healthcare and infrastructure end-use segments are expected to pick up with robust annual growth of around 4 percent between 2016 and 2019, Outokumpu estimates. The automotive and heavy industries will also increase utilization by an average of 3 and 1 percent, respectively.

Meanwhile, in the chemical, petrochemical and energy industries, growth in 2016-2019 is not expected, as the company clarifies.

Outokumpu's stainless steel shipments reached 2.381 million tons last year. The company had a share of about 30 percent of the cold rolled stainless steel supply in Europe and accounted for about 8 percent worldwide in 2015