Steel makers raise prices of long products

After cutting prices in the last two months, steel producers — secondary and primary — have raised the prices of long product by Rs 1,000-1,500 a tonne.

Public sector steel major, Rashtriya Ispat Nigam (RINL) has raised prices by Rs 1,000-1,500 a tonne across products while secondary producers that account for 50 per cent of total long products or construction steel production have hiked prices by Rs 1,000 a tonne. Public sector giant SAIL has also raised prices by Rs 1,000 a tonne.

CG Patil, director (commercial), RINL said, average prices at the mandi had dropped to Rs 22,500 a tonne in August, which were now at Rs 25,000 a tonne. RINL expects prices to remain stable for the next few months. “This is the beginning of a good phase. Demand has started increasing as infrastructure spending has risen,” Bipin Vohra, chairman and managing director, SPS Steel said. SPS is the second largest player in the eastern region at the retail level. Vohra said, the maximum retail price for TMT bar was Rs 33,600 a tonne.

Long product prices were dropped by Rs 500-2,000 a tonne in August. Patil said, in July too there was some downward correction in long products. However, the worst seems to be over. In the last two months, while flat product prices were moving up, long products were showing a reverse trend due to the monsoon and fall in demand. Globally, both long products and flat products were on an uptrend.