NEW DELHI: With China’s massive construction sector still in a funk and the US and Europe likely heading into recessions, India has emerged as a saviour for flagging global steel demand.
Poised to overtake China as the world’s most populous country next year, India is in the midst of a building boom. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking to modernise roads, rail networks and ports in attempt to vie with China as a manufacturing hub.
That’s set to translate into a 6.7 per cent jump in steel demand to around 120 million tonnes in 2023, according to the World Steel Association, the highest growth among major economies.
India, which also saw a similar expansion this year, overtook the US to become the world’s No. 2 steel consumer after China a couple of years ago.
India produces the vast majority of the steel it uses, but it’s also being forced to import more to meet the surge in demand. Inward shipments rose 15 per cent in April through October from a year earlier to 3.1 million tonnes, according to Government figures.
Despite the strong growth, India is still well behind its rival Asian powerhouse in terms of total steel consumption. Demand for next year will be less than a seventh of China’s 914 million tonnes, according to the World Steel Association data
