Nickel use patterns outside China

First let’s look at nickel use patterns outside of China. First use of nickel is dominated by stainless steel (60%), but with important volumes being used in nickel-based alloys (11%), plating (10%), alloy steels (8%), foundry (3%), copper alloys (2%). The balance (6%) is a wide range of different first uses.

End use is very diverse. Nickel is used in hundreds of different applications in all sectors of economic activity - infrastructure, capital investment and consumer goods. For convenience, these uses can be grouped into major end use sectors - engineering, transport, electrical and electronic, building and construction, metal good, tubular products. No single sector dominates nickel use. And no single end use accounts for more than two or three percent of total nickel use.

This diversity of use reflects nickel’s role as the great enabler - conferring valuable improvements of properties as varied as corrosion resistance, toughness, strength at various operating temperatures. Nickel also enables the production of vital products with special properties – magnetic, electronic, controlled expansion, catalytic and battery-related.

Nickel use has been highly innovative, with added value more than compensating for the relatively high cost of nickel. Continuous innovation has underpinned the long term trend growth rate of global nickel use, which at 4% per annum exceeds global GDP growth rate. The accumulated knowledge base related to the use of nickel provides a formidable platform on which future innovation can be based. With this proven track record of innovation, nickel can play an even more important role in future society than it does today.

Today, nickel products play key roles in all developed and developing economies. They enable efficient telecommunications, safe transportation, effective oil and gas production, clean and reliable energy generation, hygienic processing of foods and drinks, safe and reliable medical equipment, water treatment and delivery and various emissions-reducing equipment from gas scrubbers to hybrid vehicles.

These nickel products are becoming more critical to modern society - including that developing in China. All are being used in China today. All will be used more in China tomorrow. Most are being produced in China today. All will be produced in China tomorrow.