The McIlvaine Company has been making predictions about the air, water, energy (AWE) stainless steel market for decades. The political winds have been of minor importance; the big variables have been in economics. The new reality is that political forces will shape the AWE market in the coming years in an unprecedented way. If the winds are favorable, there will be two billion more people in 2050 and global GDP will be double what it is today. The AWE stainless steel product revenues could be $250 billion. The requisite value would also be $250 billion. In other words, competition will trigger the purchase of lowest cost of ownership (LTCO) products.
The Group of Twenty (G20) is a consortium of the world’s major economies. The G20 represents all inhabited continents, 80% of global GDP, 75% of global trade, and 60% of the world’s population. China and Russia are G20 members. Even though they are dealing with unfavorable political winds, as member countries, they can share the credit for the current prosperity.