Automotive Steel Market Size, Share, Industry, Forecast and outlook (2023-2030)

Global Automotive Steel Market is segmented By Type (Low-Strength Steels, Conventional High Strength Steel (HSS), Advanced High Strength Steel (AHSS), Others), By Vehicle Type (Passenger Vehicles, Commercial Vehicles, Others), By Application (Structural Assembly & Closures, Bumpers, Suspension, Rims, Others), By Region (North America, Europe, South America, Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa) – Share, Size, Outlook, and Opportunity Analysis, 2023-2030

Automotive Steel Market Overview

[150 Pages Report]  The Global Automotive Steel Market is estimated to reach at a high CAGR 3.68% during the forecast period (2023-2030). Steel is the primary material in chassis and body structures that is the backbone of the entire vehicle. Moreover, steel will continue to be the dominant material in cars, with demand expected to stay the same even as the world transitions to electrified vehicles. So as the design and engineering of vehicles evolve, so will the materials they are made from. In addition, smarter steels can not only offer better strength and safety; it can also adapt to the function of each part, offering high levels of efficiency & sustainability, and innovations in battery technology mean manufacturers can achieve their light-weighting and driving range goals more cost-effectively with steel than with any other material.

Automotive Steel Market Summary

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Furthermore, in cars these days, steel makes up about 64 % of the weight and plays a prominent role. It protects occupants, provides a positive driving experience, and reacts to road loads, comforts, and attachment points to other vehicle components. Moreover, automotive steel offers various significant features such as:

• It contains recycled steel and is endlessly recyclable
• Has lower CO2 life cycle emissions than any other automotive material
• Enables engineering of crash-resistant structures
• High-strength steels allow light but more robust vehicles
• Lightweight therefore fuel-efficient
• Durable and remanufacture-friendly
• Enables creative, flexible designs
• Enables affordable repairs
• Cost-efficient compared to other materials
• Well-established manufacturing and recycling infrastructure and workforce

Automotive Steel Market Dynamics

The growing demand for AHSS in the automotive industry is expected to increase automotive steel's market size during the forecast period. Moreover, new grades of advanced high-strength steel can reduce vehicular weight by approx. 25-38% compared to conventional steel. This means it can reduce the overall weight of a typical five-passenger family car by 175 to 275 kg and save about 3.2 to 4.4 tonnes of greenhouse gases over the car’s lifespan. In addition, the third generation AHSS (3rd Gen) seeks to offer improved or comparable or capabilities at a significantly lower cost. The primary objectives in developing 3rd Gen steels are:

• Target minimum strength and ductility levels to 1200 MPa and 30% elongation
• Use steels with lower alloying content to reduce costs

With AHSS, automobile manufacturers are using less material and saving much mass. The studies done by WAS have demonstrated in several projects (the latest is ‘Future Steel Vehicle-FSV) that 97 % of the high strength steel (HSS) and AHSS have saved 39 % mass over the benchmark weight.

Furthermore, with the high emphasis on greenhouse gas reductions and improving fuel efficiency in the transportation sector, the automobile industry invests significantly in lightweight materials. Moreover, the industry is moving towards the objective of increasing the use of lightweight materials. It gives priority to the activities connected with developing new materials, forming technologies, and manufacturing processes. In addition, weight reduction is still the most cost-effective means to reduce fuel consumption and greenhouse gases. It has been predicted that for every 9.7 % of weight eliminated from a vehicle’s total weight, fuel economy improves by 6.5 %, which means that for every kilogram of weight reduced in a vehicle, there is approx—20 kg of carbon dioxide reduction. In addition, over the last decade, intense competition between steel and low-density metals has been observed in the automobile industry due to the increasing requirements for passenger safety, vehicle performance, and fuel economy.

Automotive Steel Market Segmentation Analysis

By type, the market is segmented into low-strength steel, conventional high-strength steel (HSS), advanced high-strength steel (AHSS), and others. By vehicle type, the market is segmented into passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles, and others. By application, the market is segmented into structural assembly & closures, bumpers, suspension, rims, and others.

The first classification is carbon-manganese, bake hardening and high strength low alloy steels; interstitial free and mild steels; dual-phase, transformation-induced plasticity, twinning-induced plasticity, ferritic-bainitic, difficult phase, and martensitic steels. Moreover, the second classification method important for the part designers is the strength of the steel. Therefore, the general terms HSS and AHSS are used to select all higher strength steels. This classification system has difficulty with the ongoing development of the many new grades for each type of steel. The third classification method presents various mechanical properties or form parameters of different steels, such as work hardening exponent, total elongation, or hole expansion ratio. These properties are essential for press shop operations and virtual forming analyses.

Advanced high-strength steels (AHSS) are sophisticated materials, complex, with carefully selected multiphase microstructures and chemical compositions resulting from controlled cooling and heating processes. Moreover, various strengthening mechanisms are employed to achieve a range of ductility, strength, fatigue, and toughness properties. Recently, there has been raised funding and research for developing the “3rd Generation” of AHSS. Moreover, these steels have improved strength-ductility combinations compared to present grades, with the potential for more efficient joining capabilities, at lower costs.

Furthermore, the AHSS family includes dual-phase (DP), ferritic-bainitic (FB), complex-phase (CP), martensitic (MS or MART), hot-formed (HF), transformation-induced plasticity (TRIP), and twinning-induced plasticity (TWIP). Moreover, these 1st and 2nd Generation AHSS grades are uniquely qualified to meet certain parts' functional performance demands.  For instance, DP and TRIP steels are excellent in the car's crash zones for their high energy absorption. In addition, for structural elements of the passenger vehicles, extremely high-strength steels, such as martensitic and boron-based press hardened steels (PHS), improve safety performance.

Automotive Steel Market Geographical Share

North America dominates the automotive steel market due to the growing demand for fuel efficiency, enhanced safety, good recyclability, and formability characteristics of the vehicle. The U.S. is the largest consumer and producer of motor vehicles. The automobile industry in the economy has been witnessing development in terms of the types of vehicles being produced. U.S. motor vehicle sales reached between 14.5 to 15 million units in 2020 and the first two months of 2021 witnessed lower sales levels than December but continue to follow a general upward trend.

Moreover, strict emission regulations and investment in green infrastructure are expected to grow the demand for various steel products in the automotive sector. For instance, Canada's government invested about USD 3.4 million in clean technologies and green infrastructure by increasing the number of zero-emission vehicles. Moreover, these initiatives complement Canada's strengthened climate plan, A Healthy Environment and a Healthy Economy, which will further accelerate zero-emission vehicle adoption through an additional USD 149.5 million for ZEV infrastructure and an additional USD 286 million for ZEV purchasing incentives for Canadians.

Europe is anticipated to dominate the automotive steel market during the forecast period due to the high-revenue market value attributed to major automobile manufacturers and OEMs in the region. Moreover, the recovery of the automobile sector post the recession period across the region may further support the regional growth. Germany is one of the major markets for automotive steel in this region. The country is the highest steel producer in the EU28, with an annual production of approx. 42.43 million metric tons of crude steel in 2018 and is one of the fastest-growing European countries, even in the EV market.

APAC will exhibit a considerable growth rate on account of rising vehicle production across the region. In addition, stringent regulatory norms, including Bharat Stage and CAFE norms, mandate improving efficiency and lowering vehicle efficiency, thereby expanding the study timeframe's regional share. Most automobile manufacturers, including Toyota, Suzuki, and Honda, improve their vehicle portfolio with newer-generation vehicles by incorporating high-strength steel. Moreover, While CAFE regulations focus on reducing CO2 emissions, BS-VI focuses on other harmful exhaust vehicles. The BS IV-compliant fuel currently in use has 50 parts per million (ppm) sulfur. But BS-VI stipulates a low ten ppm. Besides, under BS-VI, particulate matter emission for diesel cars and nitrogen oxide levels are expected to be substantially lower than in BS-IV.

Automotive Steel Market Companies and Competitive Landscape

The automotive steel market is fragmented with the presence of regional and global players. The competitive contour lies with the increase in the regional company and growing investment in upstream applications. ArcelorMittal, Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corporation (NSSMC), Hebei Iron and Steel Group, Baosteel, Wuhan Iron and Steel Group, Posco, Jiangsu Shagang, Tata Steel Group, HYUNDAI Steel Company, JFE Steel Corporation are the major player in the steel market. The major players adopt several growth strategies such as product launches, acquisitions, and collaborations, contributing to growing the automotive steel market globally.

ArcelorMittal

ArcelorMittal plays a significant role in supplying it to the markets, including household, packaging, automotive, and construction. The company's steel production is divided into three regional segments Europe produces 47%, America has 35% and other regions (Kazakhstan, Ukraine, and South Africa) produce 18% of the steel.

The company manufactures smarter steel that has a central role in this new world of mobility to make cars lighter & safer and has given these advanced materials the inherent strength. Steel can also make electric drivetrains more efficient and it’s endlessly recyclable. Moreover, the company manufactures steel that is up to five times stronger than they were 20 years ago so that cars can be lighter yet remain strong and safe. The innovative electrical steels help electric motors offer better range, efficiency & acceleration, and smarter steel solutions are protecting batteries and provide chassis for electric vehicles. Also, ArcelorMittal invests industry-leading sums in R&D to create new steels, steel solutions, and steel-making processes.