Stainless steel market in India has recovered better than it was expected, said market experts and it was corroborated recently by KK Pahuja, President, Indian Stainless Steel Development Association (Issda) in a webinar held by Issda on September 22.
Issda believes that September quarter for stainless steel was strong with markets slowly opening up in the period. Export market was also healthy despite COVID-19. India’s export of stainless steel goods was fairly strong even before COVID-19 said Pahuja. In September quarter, the stainless steel market witnessed a turnaround indefinitely but he showed greater confidence in December quarter which he projected to be back to pre-COVID levels.
Uncertainties loom amid the COVID-19 cases increasing like wildfire in India. In the absence of any vaccination for COVID-19, recovery at the required pace until the end of December quarter may not be completely possible. With hospitality and restaurant sector deeply hurt due to COVID-19 lockdowns have still not opened, demand from these sectors, in particular, affected scrap demand too.
The biggest challenge for SS market in India is low consumption. On an average in India, consumption stands at 2kg per person while in European nations, 35-45kgs is consumed per person. COVID-19 has led to loss of production and consumption. The webinar was held to promote the uses and benefits of stainless steel in construction of buildings, railways, metros, tubing, pumping etc. Indian markets need to consume higher quantities of stainless steel to improve demand in the country.