The health of the galvanizing industry will be the key indicator for future zinc demand, according to Andrew Roebuck, manager of market research at Canadian miner Teck Resources Ltd.
More than half of global zinc consumption goes into the coating of steel, with the United States galvanizing about 18 percent) of its steel output in 2011, Roebuck said.
Global demand could grow rapidly if China starts to increase its galvanizing rate, which stands at only about 4 percent of steel output.
"They don’t galvanize their auto steel, they paint it," Roebuck said, although he added that the country’s move to higher-quality standards could lead to more galvanizing.
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