Steel firms hit record sales, meet production targets

The steel industry is seeing a demand pick-up in construction, automobiles and white goods, sectors

Domestic steel producers are optimistic about a demand pick-up from mid-April after record sales.

State-owned Steel Authority of India (SAIL) posted its best sales performance in 2016-17 with a growth of eight per cent. The company sold 13.143 million tonnes of steel in 2016-17 and March sales of 1.575 million tonnes were 21 per cent higher than in the same month a year ago. SAIL posted 12 per cent growth in production in 2016-17 and its exports tripled during the year. 

The Sajjan Jindal-led JSW Steel met its target for 2016-17 with a crude steel output of 15.80 million tonnes, up 26