In a new report, Global Market Insights analyst Samikshya Borse projects steady growth for steel rebar shipments, owing partly to the availability multiple milling and fabrication solutions. The development of compact rolled products provides many benefits to end users, including a vast reduction in bending & cutting work and lower storage space at construction sites. Rise in disposable income and accelerating urbanization have enhanced customer preferences and lifestyles impacting project designs. Increasing investments in green building, development of low carbon footprint products and their usage in sustainable development infrastructure projects are factors likely to drive growth in reinforced concrete construction.
Reinforcing steel is used widely for the construction of commercial and residential complexes, bridges, and other projects like canals, dams, highways and skyscrapers, Borse observes. Deformed and mild are the two main types of steel rebar specified. Deformed steel rebar is known for its robust tensile strength and well-suited for vertical concrete structures. On the other hand, mild steel rebar is fabricated from cold rolled products that are used as tensioning devices for conditions including seismic loads. Among key trends driving steel rebar market expansion, Borse notes:
- Adoption of BOF process. Basic Oxygen Steelmaking is the conventional and dominant process and is likely to record around $79 billion. BOF uses raw materials like molten pig iron and steel scrap and involves use of oxygen that is blown into the molten raw material to trigger an oxidizing action that converts it into steel. The end-product is then processed to obtain deformed steel rebar and mild steel.
- Robust demand in residential construction. The residential segment is projected to register around $44 billion in rebar shipments in the coming years. There has been a noticeable increase in industrialization in Asia Pacific that has attracted considerable number of rural population to urban areas, spiking the need for new residential spaces. Support offered by regional governments to the residential sector with customer-centric policies, coupled with lowering of stamp duty on the registration of new properties during the Covid-19 pandemic, are likely to anchor the demand for steel rebars in this sector.
- Companies operating in the steel rebar market are creating advanced products to meet construction requirements. For example, major operator Tata Tiscon announced in 2019 achievement of full roll out of a superior grade steel known as Super Ductile rebar that offers higher flexibility and strength. In view of such advancements, Global Market Insights estimates that the steel rebar market may surpass $137 billion by 2027. — Global Market Insights, Inc., Shelbyville, Del., 302/846-7766, 888/689-0688; www.gminsights.com