The market demand for steel processing is projected to grow at $642.43 Billion by 2020 and CAGR of 2.16% from 2015 to 2020. The growth in the construction, consumer appliances, and automotive industries throughout the world has played a huge part in providing the necessary momentum to the global steel processing industry, after the economic slowdown between 2007 and 2009. Also, the fact that there are less substitutes of steel has made steel indispensable from customers’ lives. The recovery of global economy would also boost the demand for the steel processing market.

The steel processing market is dominated by large firms such as ArcelorMittal (Luxembourg), Baosteel Group Corporation (China), POSCO (South Korea), Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corporation (Japan), JFE Holdings, Inc. (Japan), TATA Steel Ltd.(India), United States Steel (U.S.), Angang Steel Company Limited (China), Gerdau SA (Brazil), and Maanshan Iron and Steel Company Limited (China). They provide advanced steel processing products, and by gaining considerable expertise and experience over the years, have optimized their processes and practises to become even more efficient.

The segments considered for this report are based on the shape of steel, type of steel, end user applications and regions that constitute the steel market. The first segmentation, shape of steel, includes flat steel, long steel, and tubular steel. The second segment, type of steel, consists of alloy steel and carbon steel. Carbon steel is further segmented, on the basis of amount of carbon present, as low-carbon steel, medium-carbon steel and high-carbon steel. The applications of steel covered in this report include construction, automotive industry, shipping, energy, packaging, housing, consumer appliances, and others. On the basis of key regions, the global steel processing market has been segmented into North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and the Rest of the World (RoW).

Steel Processing Market Size, by Shape of Steel, 2015 & 2020 ($Billion)

E - Expected, P - Projected
Source: Expert Interviews and MarketsandMarkets Analysis

The Asia-Pacific region is projected to be the fastest growing from 2015 to 2020 for steel processing market. The key players of steel processing prefer agreements, contracts, joint ventures, and partnership strategies and expansions & investments to garner a larger share in the market. The leading steel processing products and service providers are focusing on emerging countries that are estimated to show potential for industrial development in the near future.

The steel processing market is a highly fragmented one owing to the huge demand for eco-friendly products and changing technologies. Major companies rely on regional and local distributors to increase their share as well as geographical presence in the market. Companies are adopting inorganic growth strategies such as acquisitions to cope with the increasing demand for steel processing in key emerging markets. These strategies have aided companies to create a larger customer and partner base in key markets. The application requirements for steel processing are continuously changing, making it essential for manufacturers to continually invest in R&D and come up with innovative solutions.