Continued growth by the industrializing nations and the so-called “extreme economies” over the next decade should maintain demand strength for zinc. Zinc consumption could grow by between 5.6 million metric tons and 7.9 million tons, forecasts Emilio Tamargo, general manager of business development and research at Xstrata Zinc in Asturiana, Spain.

The industrializing nations tend to be Brazil, Russia, India and China, the so-called “BRIC nations,” while what investment bankers have labeled the “extreme economies” include nations such as Turkey, Poland, Romania, Egypt, Vietnam and Columbia. Tamargo tells Metal Bulletin’s 11th annual zinc conference in Madrid that the potential for substantial growth in consumption by these and the industrialized economies countries “is expected to remain sustainable for many years to come.”

Besides being a key coating for steel in the production of galvanized sheets and other forms, zinc is the alloying metal for copper used to make bronze and brass, and a die-casting metal. Zinc’s compounds also are used by the rubber, chemical, paint, agricultural and pharmaceutical industries. 

Tamargo believes that zinc inventories will remain low over the next few years, according to a report in the subscription-only newsletter Nymex Direct, because of years of underinvestment in exploration and development of new mine supplies that only recently has been addressed.