Growth in Indian steel exports

Much has been made of the meteoric rise of Chinese steelmaking over the past decade but as we have discussed before this peaked in 2014. There is another major Asian steel producer, believed to be the lowest cost major producer in the region, that has more than doubled crude steel production since 2005 and is continuing to grow, posting a record 95.6 million tonnes last year, a growth of 7% compared to the global growth rate which was just 1%. After the record tonnage posted last year, in the first five months of 2017, Indian crude steel production grew by another 7%. At this point in 2018, if the rate of growth stays the same, India will have overtaken Japan to become the second largest producer of steel in the world. This growth in steel production has coincided with a decline in imports. At just under 10 million tonnes, imports are relatively modest for a country of this size and last year they collapsed by 25%. This decline has continued into the first quarter of 2017 with Q1 imports declining by another 43% year on year with falls seen across most products. There have been declines in supplies across most origin countries but Brazil and China seem to have been hardest hit. Whilst China is still, just about, the largest supplier of steel to India, imports have decreased by 64% so far this year as anti-dumping legislation has taken effect. Conversely there has been a huge increase in exports. Last year there was a 37% growth in exports and at 10.3 million tonnes, the country became a net steel exporter for the first time. So far this year, export growth has accelerated considerably and Q1 saw a 157% hike in exports to more than 5 million tonnes which, if maintained for the rest of the year, would make the country the 6th largest exporter in the world. The growth has mostly come from HRC, CRC and semis with the EU accounting for the bulk of this increase. Indeed, in Q1 alone, India increased exports to the EU by more than 1.2 million tonnes with Italy, Spain and Belgium seeing most of this growth. According to the union minister of steel, the country is targeting a trebling of last year's production total by the end of 2031 with the focus being on higher-value finished products. Although projections for internal steel demand are also high, it seems clear that a proportion of this growth will make its way into exports. We have a situation where India is likely to become the second largest producer of steel in the world next year, where imports are dropping, being discouraged by robust anti-dumping legislation, and exports are set to more than double, with EU markets being the main targets. Having been a net steel consumer in the past, India is now becoming a major supplier to the global market, at least in specific product areas and to certain markets. For a file showing Indian exports by product, please follow this link or visit the ISSB for further information.