Chinese stainless steel production grew by 21 percent in 1H 2014

The country's stainless steel output rose substantially in the first half of this year, according to data released by the Stainless Steel Council of China (SSC). The data show that there has been an increase in the production of all grades of stainless steel products in the country. According to statistics, production of stainless steel in the country during the first six months of this year amounted to 10.69 million tons, up 21.2 percent compared to the output in the corresponding period last year. China's stainless steel production during the first half of 2013 was 8.82 million tonnes. Production of 300 series stainless steel in the first half of 2014 was 5.56 million tonnes, up 27.3 percent from production during the corresponding six-month period in 2013. Interestingly, in the EU countries, manufacturers of metal racks , which were previously produced from galvanized steel, began to pay more and more attention to stainless steel. In the first half of the year, production of 200-series stainless steel products increased by 13 percent compared to the previous year, to 2.89 million tonnes. Production of 400-series stainless steel products rose 18.1 cents year on year to 2.25 million tonnes in the six months from January to June this year. In addition, exports from the country of stainless steel in the first half of this year increased by 54.5 percent, reaching 1.95 million tons. On the other hand, imports also increased by 31.5 percent over the previous year, totaling 451,000 tonnes in the first six months of 2014. Consumption of stainless steel during January-June is up 13.5 percent this year to 451,000 tons.