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The global epidemic of COVID-19 in 2020 has brought great challenges to the normal operation of the stainless steel industry. According to statistics, as of 2020, the global stainless steel output is 50.892 million tons, down 2.54% year-on-year.

Quarterly, the global output of stainless steel crude steel increased quarter by quarter after a decline in the second quarter, and reached the highest in the fourth quarter of the year. The output in the fourth quarter was 14.125 million tons, up by about 13.7% and 4.4% respectively from the previous month, which was the only one not lower than the same period of last year. In the fourth quarter, except for the output of Chinese mainland, which decreased by about 2.6% to 8.236 million tons, the output of other major regions was higher than that of the previous quarter: Europe increased by nearly 21% to 1.719 million tons, the United States increased by about 13.8% to 568,000 tons, Asia excluding Chinese mainland, South Korea and Indonesia increased by about 12.9% to 1.837 million tons, and other regions increased by about 12.9%. Compared with the same period of last year, the output of Asia excluding Chinese mainland, South Korea and Indonesia and the United States decreased in the fourth quarter, while the output of other major regions increased in the fourth quarter.

In recent years, the green economy, "Made in China 2025", "the belt and road initiative" and the upgrading of consumption structure have created favorable conditions for the development of high-end manufacturing industry and the improvement of high-end equipment manufacturing capacity, and at the same time, they have driven the rapid development of China's stainless steel industry. From 2014 to 2020, China's stainless steel output increased steadily, reaching 30.14 million tons by 2020, with a year-on-year increase of 2.52%.

In terms of import and export, according to statistics, as of 2020, China's stainless steel imports amounted to 1.805 million tons, 61.3% year-on-year, of which 863,900 tons of steel billets were imported, up by 468.2% year-on-year; Due to the escalating trade friction between China and the United States, the impact of international trade protection has become increasingly prominent, and the number of international anti-dumping cases has been increasing. China's stainless steel products and their import and export have been affected. In 2020, China's export volume was 3,416,900 tons, down 7% year-on-year.

From the perspective of variety structure, the proportion of 200 series stainless steel has been increasing since 2009, and it will reach 32.19% in 2020, and there is still a trend of continuous growth, which shows that enterprises increase production and resume production of 200 series products. Although the actual output of 300-series and 400-series stainless steel has increased, the proportion of stainless steel shows a downward trend. The actual situation is that the level of stainless steel equipment and the extension of product chain in China are obviously different from those in developed countries, which also reflects the low consumption level of stainless steel in China.