India's steel consumption grows 1.3% in Apr-Nov

India's steel consumption grew by a moderate 1.3 per cent to 48.62 million tonnes during the April-November period of current fiscal on lingering effect of the economic slowdown and slow growth in production.

The country, the world's fourth largest steel producer, had consumed 48 MT steel in the corresponding period of the last fiscal, Joint Plant Committee (JPC), a unit under Steel Ministry, said Tuesday.

"The slow growth numbers appear to reflect the lingering effect of the economic slowdown and is further depressed by the slow growth in production for sale in April-November, 2014 as compared to the same period of last year," it said in a note sent to the Ministry.

Domestic real consumption of steel in November 2014 at 5.488 MT was down by 9 percent compared to October. Year-on-year, it increased by 8 percent, it said.

Production of crude steel during April-November period of the current fiscal was higher by 2.5 percent at 55.29 MT to which main producers SAIL, RINL, Tata Steel, Essar, JSW and JSPL together contributed 29.769 MT. The rest produced 25.52 MT during the period.

The production in November at 6.81 MT was higher by 3.5 percent over the same month last year.

Export of total finished steel was down by 5.3 percent during the first eight months of the current fiscal at 3.5 MT over the same period last year.

Imports, however, zoomed to 5.5 MT, a 49 percent growth during the April-November period.

"India remained a net importer of total finished steel in April-November, 2014," JPC said.