That dollar amount results from a 177.6% acceleration compared to five years earlier in 2019 when stainless steel exports were worth $1.9 billion.
From 2022 to 2023, the value of globally exported stainless steel slipped by -20.1% starting from $6.58 billion.
The 5 biggest exporters of stainless steel in 2023 are Indonesia, United Kingdom, Sweden, Italy and Germany. That powerful cohort generated 82.2% of exported stainless steel by value.
Among continents, exporters in Asia sold the highest dollar worth of exported stainless steel during 2023 with shipments valued at $3.1 billion or almost three-fifths (58.1%) of world exports for that commodity. In second place were European exporters via a 38.7% share.
Smaller percentages came from providers in North America (2.9%), Latin America (0.13%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean, Africa (0.08%), then Oceania (0.02%) mostly Australia.
For research purposes, the 4-digit Harmonized Tariff System code prefix is 7218 for stainless steel in primary forms including ingots.
Stainless Steel Exporters by Country
Below are the 15 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of stainless steel during 2023.
- Indonesia: US$2.8 billion (54.1% of total stainless steel exports)
- United Kingdom: $783.9 million (14.9%)
- Sweden: $335.4 million (6.4%)
- Italy: $188.8 million (3.6%)
- Germany: $167.2 million (3.2%)
- Austria: $128 million (2.4%)
- Spain: $124.9 million (2.4%)
- Belgium: $114.7 million (2.2%)
- United States: $86.4 million (1.6%)
- South Korea: $74.3 million (1.4%)
- France: $70.4 million (1.3%)
- Canada: $68.2 million (1.3%)
- Taiwan: $53.8 million (1%)
- India: $37.1 million (0.7%)
- Netherlands: $28.7 million (0.5%)
By value, the listed 15 countries shipped 97.1% of global stainless steel exported in 2023.
Among the top exporters, the fastest-growing stainless steel exporters from 2022 to 2023 were: Austria (up 33.9%), Canada (up 26.9%), Belgium (up 24.6%) and Sweden (up 15.9%).
Those countries that posted declines in their sales of exported stainless steel were led by: South Korea (down -45.5% from 2022), India (down -35.3%), Indonesia (down -29.9%), Taiwan (down -23.8%) and Germany (down -15%).
Searchable List of Stainless Steel Exporting Countries in 2023
As listed below, the 80 suppliers of stainless steel exporting to worldwide markets generated all international sales in 2023.
| Rank | Exporter | Stainless Steel Exports | 2022-3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Indonesia | $2,848,999,000 | -29.9% |
| 2. | United Kingdom | $783,866,000 | -3.4% |
| 3. | Sweden | $335,376,000 | +15.9% |
| 4. | Italy | $188,770,000 | -8.3% |
| 5. | Germany | $167,160,000 | -15% |
| 6. | Austria | $127,998,000 | +33.9% |
| 7. | Spain | $124,858,000 | +4.6% |
| 8. | Belgium | $114,728,000 | +24.6% |
| 9. | United States | $86,439,000 | -14.4% |
| 10. | South Korea | $74,332,000 | -45.5% |
| 11. | France | $70,395,000 | +11.5% |
| 12. | Canada | $68,182,000 | +26.9% |
| 13. | Taiwan | $53,772,000 | -23.8% |
| 14. | India | $37,117,000 | -35.3% |
| 15. | Netherlands | $28,660,000 | -6.7% |
| 16. | Finland | $16,705,000 | +50.4% |
| 17. | Denmark | $16,373,000 | -10.3% |
| 18. | Portugal | $13,788,000 | +27.8% |
| 19. | Czech Republic | $11,844,000 | +10.2% |
| 20. | Japan | $11,652,000 | -28.8% |
| 21. | Slovenia | $10,967,000 | +34.2% |
| 22. | Vietnam | $9,076,000 | +54% |
| 23. | United Arab Emirates | $8,208,000 | -48.2% |
| 24. | Australia | $6,523,000 | -37% |
| 25. | Poland | $5,480,000 | -50.4% |
| 26. | Hungary | $4,510,000 | -4.3% |
| 27. | Slovakia | $3,865,000 | +21.6% |
| 28. | Singapore | $3,824,000 | -48.6% |
| 29. | Russia | $3,224,000 | -27% |
| 30. | Türkiye | $2,863,000 | -2.9% |
| 31. | South Africa | $2,705,000 | +55% |
| 32. | Azerbaijan | $2,679,000 | -8.7% |
| 33. | Serbia | $2,140,000 | +18.3% |
| 34. | Kazakhstan | $1,451,000 | +215.4% |
| 35. | mainland China | $1,277,000 | +55.2% |
| 36. | Switzerland | $1,275,000 | -20.1% |
| 37. | Latvia | $1,190,000 | -8.7% |
| 38. | Croatia | $1,142,000 | -26.4% |
| 39. | Malaysia | $1,102,000 | +128.6% |
| 40. | Luxembourg | $1,090,000 | +1297% |
| 41. | Norway | $926,000 | -85.3% |
| 42. | Brazil | $901,000 | -96.8% |
| 43. | Ukraine | $836,000 | -67.5% |
| 44. | Thailand | $739,000 | +35.6% |
| 45. | Zambia | $501,000 | -45.5% |
| 46. | Nigeria | $421,000 | -48% |
| 47. | Algeria | $363,000 | +1550% |
| 48. | Estonia | $310,000 | +44.9% |
| 49. | Ireland | $305,000 | +54% |
| 50. | US Minor Outlying Is | $303,000 | 0% |
| 51. | Mexico | $253,000 | +96.1% |
| 52. | Philippines | $237,000 | +2863% |
| 53. | Hong Kong | $177,000 | -62.4% |
| 54. | Romania | $164,000 | -66.1% |
| 55. | Greece | $120,000 | -8.4% |
| 56. | New Zealand | $84,000 | +250% |
| 57. | Tanzania | $70,000 | 0% |
| 58. | Egypt | $68,000 | +7.9% |
| 59. | Uganda | $67,000 | -29.5% |
| 60. | Iran | $64,000 | -40.2% |
| 61. | Lebanon | $31,000 | +121.4% |
| 62. | Sri Lanka | $24,000 | +2300% |
| 63. | Lithuania | $23,000 | -92.7% |
| 64. | Honduras | $20,000 | 0% |
| 65. | Jordan | $18,000 | 0% |
| 66. | Bahamas | $13,000 | 0% |
| 67. | Colombia | $13,000 | 0% |
| 68. | Pakistan | $11,000 | -52.2% |
| 69. | Panama | $10,000 | 0% |
| 70. | Costa Rica | $10,000 | 0% |
| 71. | Ecuador | $8,000 | 0% |
| 72. | Tunisia | $7,000 | -78.8% |
| 73. | Bosnia/Herzegovina | $6,000 | -14.3% |
| 74. | Bulgaria | $5,000 | -28.6% |
| 75. | Bahrain | $1,000 | -97.4% |
| 76. | Israel | $1,000 | -98.7% |
| 77. | Iceland | $1,000 | 0% |
| 78. | Guatemala | $1,000 | 0% |
| 79. | Malta | $1,000 | 0% |
| 80. | Eswatini | $1,000 | 0% |
You can change the presentation order by clicking the triangle icon at the top of the columns. An entry of 0% in the right-most column means that 2022 data was unavailable.
The fastest-growing exporters of stainless steel are the Philippines (up 2,863% from 2022), Sri Lanka (up 2,300%), Algeria (up 1,550%), Luxembourg (up 1,297%) then New Zealand (up 250%).
Main Exporters of Stainless Steel Ranked by Shipment Weight
In 2023, the overall volume for worldwide shipments of stainless steel totaled 2.096 million tons. That physical tonnage is 183.8% higher than 5 years earlier in 2019 but falling to a -14.5% drop compared to 2.451 million tons one year earlier in 2022.
The following 15 countries were responsible for 97.9% of the total shipment weight for stainless steel.
- Indonesia: 1,474,705 tons of exported stainless steel (down -19.3% from 2022)
- United Kingdom: 237,945 tons (up 14%)
- Sweden: 66,389 tons (up 23.2%)
- Germany: 42,715 tons (down -25.7%)
- Italy: 38,158 tons (up 2.9%)
- South Korea: 33,764 tons (down -52.4%)
- Netherlands: 28,143 tons (up 81.1%)
- Belgium: 24,244 tons (up 6%)
- Austria: 20,019 tons (up 28.3%)
- Canada: 18,351 tons (up 52.5%)
- France: 16,640 tons (up 18.5%)
- Spain: 15,803 tons (down -20.3%)
- India: 12,193 tons (down -33.1%)
- United States of America: 11,395 tons (down -20.2%)
- Taiwan: 11,367 tons (down -10.7%)
Posting double-digit growth in quantities of stainless steel exported from 2022 to 2023 were suppliers in the Netherlands (up 81%), Canada (up 52.5%), Austria (up 28.3%), France (up 18.5%) and the United Kingdom (up 14%).
Average Unit Prices for Top Stainless Steel Exporters
For 2023, the worldwide average unit price for exported stainless steel was $2,511 per ton.
The global average price in 2023 is -2.2% lower than the $2,567 unit price for 2019. Year over year, the dollar rate for stainless steel exports fell by -6.5% compared to $2,686 per ton in 2022.
The following list itemizes the average unit prices for stainless steel exported by the top 15 international suppliers of stainless steel sorted by total shipment value.
Also shown is the change in average unit prices per exporting country from 2022 to 2023.
- Indonesia: US$1,932 per ton of stainless steel (down -13.1% from 2022)
- United Kingdom: $3,294 per ton (down -15.3%)
- Sweden: $5,052 per ton (down -5.9%)
- Italy: $4,947 per ton (down -10.9%)
- Germany: $3,913 per ton (up 14.4%)
- Austria: $6,394 per ton (up 4.4%)
- Spain: $7,901 per ton (up 31.2%)
- Belgium: $4,732 per ton (up 17.6%)
- United States of America: $7,586 per ton (up 7.4%)
- South Korea: $2,202 per ton (up 14.5%)
- France: $4,230 per ton (down -5.9%)
- Canada: $3,715 per ton (down -16.8%)
- Taiwan: $4,731 per ton (down -14.7%)
- India: $3,044 per ton (down -3.3%)
- Netherlands: $1,018 per ton (down -48.5%)
Charging higher average unit prices were Spain (up 31.2% from 2022), Belgium (up 17.6%), South Korea (up 14.5%) and Germany (up 14.4%).
The highest average prices were charged by stainless steel exporters in the Spain, United States of America, Austria and Sweden.
Countries Generating Biggest Surpluses Trading Stainless Steel
The following countries posted the highest positive net exports for stainless steel during 2023. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports. Thus, the statistics below present the surplus between the value of each country’s exported stainless steel and its import purchases for that same commodity.
- Indonesia: $2.8 billion (down -30.2% from 2022)
- United Kingdom: $741.9 million (down -2.9%)
- Italy: $98.5 million (reversing a -$55.9 million deficit)
- Spain: $78 million (up 124.9%)
- Canada: $44.7 million (up 45.4%)
- South Korea: $26.7 million (down -59.8%)
- Austria: $20.3 million (down -41.1%)
- Denmark: $12.2 million (down -6.6%)
- Netherlands: $11 million (up 264.1%)
- Slovenia: $9.7 million (up 39.4%)
- Australia: $5.9 million (down -38.3%)
- United Arab Emirates: $5.7 million (down -57.8%)
- Japan: $4.8 million (down -40.2%)
- Germany: $4.7 million (down -90.9%)
- Finland: $3.6 million (reversing a -$3.3 million deficit)
World-leading supplier Indonesia earned the highest surplus in the international trade of stainless steel. In turn, this positive cashflow confirms Indonesia’s strong competitive advantage for this specific product category.
Countries Posting Worst Deficits Trading Stainless Steel
The following countries posted the highest negative net exports for stainless steel during 2023. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports. Thus, the statistics below present the deficit between the value of each country’s imported stainless steel purchases and its exports for that same commodity.
- India: -US$1.4 billion (up 126.6% from 2022)
- mainland China: -$1.2 billion (down -65%)
- Taiwan: -$366.2 million (down -17.1%)
- Belgium: -$342.7 million (reversing a $7.7 million surplus)
- United States of America: -$216 million (down -1.7%)
- France: -$132.5 million (down -64%)
- Ukraine: -$50.3 million (up 122.9%)
- Portugal: -$48.9 million (down -43.5%)
- Sweden: -$35.8 million (down -86.2%)
- Vietnam: -$20.4 million (down -34.8%)
- Romania: -$16.9 million (up 417.5%)
- Poland: -$16.8 million (up 61.1%)
- Switzerland: -$8.9 million (down -24.9%)
- Argentina: -$8.1 million (up 16.9%)
- Tunisia: -$7.9 million (up 38.1%)
Highly populated India incurred the highest deficit in the international trade of stainless steel. In turn, this negative cashflow highlights India’s strong competitive disadvantage for this specific product category but also signals opportunities for stainless steel-supplying countries to help satisfy the powerful demand.
Stainless Steel Exporting Companies
Below are global stainless steel-processing conglomerates that represent established players engaged in the international trade of stainless steel. Each home country is shown within parenthesis.
- Acerinox, SA (Spain)
- British Steel Limited (United Kingdom)
- China Steel (Taiwan)
- Gruppo Riva (Italy)
- Nucor Corporation (United States)
- SSAB AB (Sweden)
- Tata Steel Limited (India)
- ThyssenKrupp AG (Germany)
- Vallourec (France)
- Voestalpine (Austria)
See also Iron Ore Exports by Country, Copper Ore Exports bv Country, Top Nickel Exporters by Country, Top Cork Exporting Countries, Plastic Item Exports by Country and Top Aluminum Exporters by Country
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Field Listing: Exports – Commodities. Accessed on July 31, 2024
Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on July 31, 2024
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on July 31, 2024
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on July 31, 2024
Wikipedia, List of steel producers. Accessed on July 31, 2024