Sourcing Note 12 · Market Analysis
The grade line is the only honest part of a stainless quote
"304" without a mill test report is a hope, not a fact. Gulf buyers now ask for the MTC first.
Most stainless quotes I read for Gulf buyers say "304" and stop there. That one word hides three things that change whether the balustrade or cladding survives a coastal site. The mill test report is the only proof of the actual chemistry — chromium and nickel points, not a sticker on the bundle.
I am seeing more enquiries from UAE and Saudi where the buyer now asks for that report before the price, and suppliers who cannot show it lose the job. A simple check: ask for the MTC tied to your heat number, not a generic one. If a workshop hesitates, the grade is a hope, not a fact.
Send me your room use and I will tell you which grade actually earns its cost.