Growth in Construction Projects and Automotive Production Are Influencing High Corrosion Resistance Steel Market Growth

Surge in economic losses due to corrosion is creating need for advanced corrosion resistant products. High Corrosion Resistance Steel Market size is forecast to reach $76,837.2 Million by 2025, after growing at a CAGR of 5.5% during 2020-2025.

The high corrosion resistance steel market is growing at a significant rate during the forecast period, owning to rising losses due to corrosion and increasing demand from various industries. Globally, corrosion causes huge financial losses in a large number of industries. It also eventually weakens structures, posing a threat to property and life. High corrosion resistance steel is thus becoming a necessity for industries to safeguard the significant investments they make in terms of money, property, and safety of workers. Therefore, the demand for these products is significantly increasing from various end-use industries such as marine, oil and gas, building and construction, chemicals, automotive, aerospace, and others. However, due to the COVID-19 outbreak, many countries are under shut down owing to which the market is witnessing a period of low demand from its end-use industries.

According to the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America, in U.S and Canada, a total of $791 billion investments in new oil and gas infrastructure will be made from 2018 to 2035. In addition, according to International Monetary Fund, by 2023, oil demand will reach 104.7 mb/d, up by 6.9 mb/d from 2017. Industries such as oil and gas, chemical processing, shipbuilding, and offshore involve processing in high temperature and high-pressure environment where the risk of corrosion is high therefore high corrosion steel are extensity used in these industries in applications such as pipes, valves, ship walls, evaporators, heat exchangers, and decks. Furthermore, according to OICA, in 2018 the production of light commercial vehicles and heavy trucks increased by 5.9% and 3.5% up to 20,635,799 and 4,227,815 from 2017. As per the European Automobile Manufacturers Association, car registrations in Europe reached nearly 15 million in 2018. In addition, according to the International Energy Agency, in 2018, 3.29 million electric vehicles deployed globally and the number will increase up to 125 million by 2030. High corrosion-resistance steel is used in various auto components such as basic vehicle frames for doors, mufflers, hoods and fuel tanks. Therefore, the growth in this industry will boost the high corrosion resistant steel market.

Asia Pacific is anticipated to emerge as a major player in the global market over the forecast period driven by the robust growth in various end-use industries such as aerospace & defense, automotive, building & construction, and other industries. According to the International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers, China’s automotive production reached 27.8 million units and accounted for 29% of the global automotive production in 2018. In addition, in 2019, according to the International Trade Administration (ITA), China is the world’s second largest civil aerospace and aviation services market and one of the world’s fastest-growing. In 2016, according to Boeing, China is estimated to require around 6,810 new commercial aircraft, valued at $1 trillion, over the next two decades. Furthermore, according to the International Trade Administration (ITA), in 2018 the Indian government spent a total of $645 in the civil aviation sector. Also, India’s rapid aviation growth is expected to drive the demand for 2,300 aircrafts worth $320 billion over the next 20 years, according to Boeing. Furthermore, according to the National Bureau of Statistics of China and The Ministry of Trade and Industry, Singapore, the construction sector in China and Singapore has been witnessing decent growth in recent years. As high corrosion resistance steel is extensively used in these industries, to reduce the risk of damage from corrosion, the growth in these industries will drive high corrosion resistance steel market growth in the region.

However, operations in various industries such as oil & gas, automotive, aerospace, and mining are being significantly affected due to the COVID-19 epidemic, as most countries have issued “stay at home guidance” i.e., lockdown. And it is expected that the outbreak of COVID-19 will be seen in the whole year of 2020, and a few months in 2021. This is limiting high corrosion resistance steel market growth.

Surge in economic losses owning to corrosion of structure has increased the usage of high corrosion resistance steel in the building and construction sector. High corrosion resistance steel is extensively used in the construction industry in various applications such as bridges, large construction decks, film evaporators, and outside architectural pipes. The investment in infrastructure development is significantly increasing which is driving high corrosion resistant steel market growth. For instance, in 2019, China approved to invest $142 billion in 26 infrastructure projects. In addition, according to India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF), India plans to spend US$ 1.4 trillion on infrastructure in the next five years. Furthermore, construction projects such as ‘100 smart cities’ and ‘Housing for All by 2022’ in India are influencing high corrosion resistant steel market growth. In addition, the United States is witnessing noticeable investment for residential construction, and the trend is expected to remain the same in the near future. For instance, according to the U.S Census bureau, in January 2020 value of construction put in place in residential and nonresidential construction increased to $567,555 million and $470,986 million from $546,532 million and $466,436 million in December 2019. Mexico is also witnessing high housing demand, therefore attracting noticeable investment into construction. For instance, In January 2019, Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) granted local currency financing program to the Mexican company Procsa up to 150 million Mexican pesos ($7.8 million), in order to finance for land acquisition, development, and commercialization of housing for low and middle-income families in the country. Therefore, the growth in construction projects and investments is driving high corrosion resistance steel market growth.

Research and development in corrosion resistance and corrosion protection technologies are increasing.  Some newly developed steel and corrosion-resistance technologies include costal weathering steel for bridges, lead-free coated steel sheet, Zn-Al coated steel sheet, Zn-Mg-coated steel sheet for tank, chromate-free coated steel sheet, and so on.

Investments in R&D and innovation could also help the steel industry to lower its future capital requirements and operating costs while increasing yields and reducing resource and energy use. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development investments in R&D in the steel industry across several economies such as China, Korea, and so on are increasing. Thus, expected to create opportunities in the coming years.

The major companies in the high corrosion resistance steel market include Nippon Steel Corporation, Acerinox S.A, ArcelorMittal, Baosteel Group, Jindal Stainless, Outokumpu, POSCO, and Yieh United Steel Corp among others. These industry players are involved in various strategic initiatives to expand their presence. For instance, in July 2017, in an attempt to meet the demand for high-strength and anti-corrosion steel, Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corporation and PT Krakatau Nippon Steel Sumikin established a joint venture in Indonesia to manufacture and sell automotive flat steel products.