New Delhi, Oct. 14 -- India's steel demand is expected to grow the fastest among major consuming nations in both 2026 and 2027, driven by higher demand in construction, real estate, manufacturing, renewable energy, and other sectors.
In its recent short-range outlook, the World Steel Association (WSA) has pegged India's year-on-year steel demand growth rate at 7.9% in 2026. This will rise slightly to 8% in 2027.
India is the world's second-largest steel-producing and consuming nation after China. Steel consumption strongly correlates with a country's economic growth. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has recently raised India's GDP growth forecast to 7% for 2026 and 2027, up from 6.4% forecast in July.
WSA is one of the largest associations of steel makers globally. Its members represent around 85% of the global steel production.
"India remains the world's fastest-growing major steel market. Growth continues to be broad-based. Infrastructure-led construction remains the primary driver. Private real estate demand is robust. Healthy manufacturing growth, a substantial renewable energy project pipeline and continued expansion of manufacturing capacity are lifting both electrical and mechanical machinery, while automotive output is buoyed by domestic demand, export momentum and policy support," WSA said.
Steel demand in China, the world's biggest market, is expected to contract by 2.0% in 2026. However, in 2027, the contraction is expected to narrow to 1.0%.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.