Page 17 - Steel Industry

Steel firms prep for festivals, see demand by auto, consumer goods sectors

Bookings by the two industries 20% higher ahead of the festive season compared to last year, says one expert

Steel output grows 5% in Jan-Jun; trend to continue in 2nd half: SteelMint

India has produced 66.14 MT crude steel in January-June 2023, registering a 5 per cent year-on-year growth and the uptrend is likely to continue in second half of the year as well, according to SteelMint. The domestic industry had produced 63 million tonnes (MT) crude steel in the January-June period of 2022, the research firm said. The increase in production was mainly on account of improved capacity utilisation rates coupled with the ramping up of capacities by key Indian steel players, it said. According to SteelMint these factors will continue to support the growth in production in the second half of the ongoing year, SteelMint added. The domestic steel consumption also registered an 11 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) increase to 58.4 MT in the first half of 2023, from 52.7 MT in the same period of 2022. Steel exports took a hit of 30 per cent during the period under review, as China increased its outbound shipments of steel. "India's steel exports dropped to 4.74 MT in H1 from

Govt meets steel industry to discuss readiness to comply EU's carbon tax

Top officers of government and industry representatives from the steel sector on Wednesday held discussions on implementation issues regarding the European Union's move to impose carbon tax, sources said. The meeting was called by the commerce ministry and was chaired by Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal. Senior officials from ministries of Finance, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Power, Steel and Mines participated in the meeting besides the steel and engineering sector. They also said that India and the EU would soon decide on a schedule to discuss the matter during the Trade and Technology Council (TTC) meeting. The meeting was a follow-up of a similar meeting held in May where the industry was asked to be ready for the carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM). The Wednesday's meeting comes amid the CBAM being implemented by the European Union (EU), which would have an adverse impact on India's exports of metals such as iron, steel and aluminium product

Centre monitoring steel import situation as China shipments touch 5-yr high

India is monitoring the import situation on steel after shipments from China touched a five-year high in the first four months

Vizag Steel Plant logs highest monthly sales of value-added steel in Aug

Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Ltd (RINL) or Vizag Steel Plant logged its best ever monthly sales of value-added steel products in August since inception at 1.57 lakh tonne, said an official on Saturday. In August, the steel plant sold 99,000 tonne of rounds (steel variety), which is the best ever sales milestone for this variety, and also logged similar performances in the sale of wire rod coils (79,000 tonne), rebars (2 lakh tonne) and structurals (46,000 tonne). "The sales volume of 1,57,000 tonne of value-added steel achieved in August 2023 by RINL is the best ever monthly sales of value-added steel sales for any month since inception," said the official in a press release. Including value-added steel products, Vizag Steel Plant achieved overall sales of Rs 2,502 crore in August 2023, which is 39 per cent higher than Rs 1,806 crore logged in the corresponding period last year. Besides August highlights, the steel plant located in the port city of Visakhapatnam achieved the highest ...

Govt likely to extend export benefits under RoDTEP scheme for pharma, steel

The government is expected to extend export benefits under the RoDTEP scheme to iron and steel, chemicals and pharmaceutical sectors beyond September 30, according to a senior official. In December 2022, the government extended the benefits under the Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products (RoDTEP) Scheme to chemicals, pharmaceuticals and products of iron and steel till September 30 this year. "As exports are not doing good for the last few months, there is a demand to extend it for about six months till March 2024. It is under consideration. We may extend it," the official said. These three sectors were late entrants into the scheme that aims to refund duties, taxes and levies at the central, state and local level that gets added to the cost of products meant for exports. This scheme is a replacement for the Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS) which ended last year. At present, over 10,342 export items get the RoDTEP benefits. The incentive is paid in the for

Co-monitoring mechanism for steel exports between India, US at final stage

India and the US are in the final stages of setting up a joint monitoring mechanism to enable domestic exports of certain steel and aluminium products to America without paying extra duties, an official said. Indian exports of these products attract additional duties in the US as Washington, in 2018, imposed a 25 per cent import duty on steel products and 10 per cent on certain aluminium products on grounds of national security. In retaliation, India in June 2019 imposed additional customs duties on 28 American products. During the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in June, the two countries decided to remove trade irritants and as part of that both sides agreed to end six trade disputes at the World Trade Organisation (WTO). They have mutually resolved those six disputes and India has decided to remove additional duties on eight US products, including chickpeas, lentils and apples, which were imposed in 2019. The US, on its part, has agreed to provide greater market access to

Proposals formulated for 2nd edition of PLI, will take time: Steel secy

Steel Secretary Nagendra Nath Sinha on Thursday said the ministry has formulated proposals in consultation with the industry for second edition of the PLI scheme but its implementation would take "some time" as a few processes, including Cabinet nod, are pending. The Union Cabinet in July 2021 approved the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme to boost the production of specialty steel in India. "We have formulated proposals for PLI 2 and need approval of the government for this. It may take some time. The proposal we have formulated has been done in consultation with all players of the industry and if we take it up, we expect a good response," Sinha said on the sidelines of an industry event in Greater Noida. "I cannot commit any time frame for this right now because a lot of processes, like the proposal being sent to powered group of secretaries and then to the Cabinet for approval, are due and it will take some time," the Steel Secretary told reporters. He was in Greater Noid

Govt committed to addressing concerns of stainless steel industry: Minister

The central government is committed to addressing concerns of the stainless steel industry, Union Minister of State for Steel Faggan Singh Kulaste said on Thursday. The stainless steel industry has urged the government to address issues surrounding the export-import regulations to boost the sector's growth. "The central government is committed to looking after the concerns Stainless steel's recyclability is a key factor in its sustainability," Kulaste said, while virtually addressing the inauguration of the maiden India Stainless Steel Expo (ISSE) 2023 being held in Greater Noida. "With the help of stainless steel, we can conserve natural resources, reduce energy consumption, minimise waste and contribute to a more sustainable and eco-friendly future," Kulaste said. The Indian Stainless Steel Development Association (ISSDA), the organiser of the three-day event, said that consumption of stainless steel in India has grown nearly 10 per cent over the past financial year to reach 4 ..

India's core sector output rises to five-month high of 8.2% in June: Govt

The government revised the final growth rate of the index of eight core industries for March 2023 to 4.2%

BHP expects Indian steel industry's boom to boost its coal business

Around 40% of BHP's metallurgical coal, used by steel mills and known as coking coal, is now heading to India, chief commercial officer Vandita Pant told FT

Steel TMT rebar prices cool off to 2-year low, trend to continue: Report

The prices of TMT rebars -- a key requirement for infrastructure projects -- are trading at 24-month low levels and the trend is expected to continue for the next few quarters, SteelMint said. Rates of TMT bars produced through blast furnace (BF) route have touched Rs 51,400/tonne level and rebars manufactured through induction furnace (IF) are trading at Rs 47,493 a tonne, the research firm said. The latest prices were registered on July 23. Such level for TMT bars produced via BF route was last witnessed in August 2021 when the rate of rebar was Rs 51,625 per tonne. While IF made rebars were priced at Rs 47,041/tonne in July 2021, SteelMint data showed. Since then the prices have maintained an upward movement to reach their all-time high levels -- Rs 72,880 per tonne (BF route) in April 2022 and Rs 68,418 per tonne in March 2022, it said. A SteelMint analyst cited slowdown in demand on account of inflationary pressures as the main reason for fall in prices. "Steel exports from

Ore price fixed at Rs 4,950 per tonne, cess to be levied additionally: NMDC

State-owned NMDC on Tuesday fixed the rates for lump ore and fines at Rs 4,950 and Rs 4,210 per tonne, respectively. Lump ore, or high-grade iron ore, contains 65.53 per cent iron, while fines are inferior grade ore with 64 per cent iron or less. The latest prices are inclusive of royalty as well as contributions to District Mineral Foundation (DMF) and National Mineral Exploration Trust (NMET). Cess, forest permit fee, and other taxes will be levied additionally, the miner said in a regulatory filing. On May 30, NMDC fixed the rate of lump ore and fines at Rs 3,900 and Rs 3,560 per tonne, respectively. At that time, the rates excluded royalty, contributions to DMF and NMET, cess, forest permit fee and other taxes. "Inclusion of royalty, DMF, and NMET brings the prices on a par with the rates of miners in Odisha. Customers will now find it easier to calculate the prices of iron ore," a SteelMint analyst said. Iron ore is one of the key raw materials used in manufacturing steel,

Betting on India's growth, top steel firms in midst of big expansion plans

Private sector steel-makers have aggressive expansion plans to the end of the decade betting on faster economic growth

India's steel production rises 4.1% in May, global output falls 5%

India has registered a 4.1 per cent growth in its crude steel production at 11.2 MT amid 5.1 per cent downfall in the global output at 161.6 MT in May 2023, according to the World Steel Association (worldsteel). Despite a 7.3 per year-on-year (y-o-y) fall, China remained the top steel producing country in May with 90.1 MT crude steel production, worldsteel data showed. India produced 11.2 MT crude steel, up 4.1 per cent over May 2022, the body said in its latest report. Japan's output was also 5.2 per cent down y-o-y at 7.6 MT. The United States produced 6.9 MT steel registering a 2.3 per cent fall annually. Russia is estimated to have produced 6.8 MT, up 8.8 per cent. South Korea registered a marginal fall of 0.1 per cent to 5.8 MT. While Germany produced 3.2 MT, Brazil 2.8 MT, Trkiye 2.9 MT and Iran produced 3.3 MT in May 2023. Brussels-based World Steel Association is one of the largest industry associations in the world, with members in every major steel-producing country. I

UK removes countervailing tariff on steel bar, rod imports from India

The UK government has announced the removal of an up to 4 per cent countervailing tariff on stainless steel bars and rods imported from India due to a perceived low impact on local suppliers. The UK's Trade Remedies Authority (TRA) said on Thursday that its recommendation that the countervailing measure on imports of stainless steel bars and rods from India be revoked has been agreed by the government. Countervailing measures are put in place to offset imports being sold at unfair prices due to government subsidies in their country of origin. They are one of three types of trade remedies that are allowed under World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules. The TRA concluded that although subsidised imports would continue from India if the countervailing measure were no longer applied, it is unlikely that the UK industry would be injured if the measure was no longer in place. Trade association UK Steel said there is minimal supply to the UK market of stainless bars and rods by UK producers

DGTR for continuation of anti-dumping duty on China steel wheels for 5 yrs

The commerce ministry's investigation arm DGTR has recommended for continuation of anti-dumping duty on Chinese steel wheels for five more years with a view to guarding domestic players against cheap imports. In a notification, the Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) has said that continuation of the existing duties on the imports of Flat BaseSteel Wheels from China would address and mitigate the likelihood of injury to the domestic players. "The authority considers it necessary to recommend the continued imposition of existing definitive anti-dumping...for another period of five years...," the DGTR has said. The directorate has recommended USD 613 per tonne duty on the product. The finance ministry takes the final decision to impose this duty. The product is used in tubed tyre applications in commercial vehicles. In its probe, the DGTR has concluded that there is likelihood of continuation/recurrence of dumping and injury to the domestic industry if the existing duties a

India in talks with US on steel, aluminum tariff exemption: Report

NEW DELHI/WASHINGTON - India is in talks with the United States to seek an exemption on steel and aluminum tariffs that were imposed by former U.S. President Donald Trump, while offering withdrawal of some retaliatory tariffs, three Indian sources told Reuters.

Steel industry saved Rs 34,800 cr forex by reducing imports: Scindia

The government policies for steel sector helped the country save Rs 34,800 crore in foreign exchange by reducing imports and added around 60 million tonnes (MT) of crude steel capacity, Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said. India pushed Japan to third place to become the world's second largest steel producing nation, the minister for steel said while addressing a press conference titled 'The 9-years of government's seva, sushasan and gareeb kalyan focusing on steel sector'. From an installed capacity of 109.85 MT in 2014-15, India's steel capacity increased by a sharp 46 per cent to 160.30 MT in 2022-23, he said, adding the total production rose 42 per cent from 88.98 MT to 126.26 MT. The per capita steel consumption also rose from 60.8 kilogramme to 86.7 kg during the said period, registering a rise of 43 per cent. As per the National Steel Policy 2017, the country aims to scale up the capacity to 300 MT by 2030-31 and production to 250 MT. While the target is to increase the

Centre aims at covering refractories in PLI 2.0 to support steel industry

The Centre is looking to include refractories in the upcoming Production Linked Incentive Scheme 2.0 for steel as it aims at doubling the country's production capacity for the metal to 300 million tonne by 2030, an official said. Refractories are a critical input for steel production, and India depends on the import of the raw material. The Ministry of Steel is currently in talks with the refractory industry to develop an incentive policy to boost domestic production and reduce the country's dependence on imports from China, he said. "The steel industry is a major user and consumer of refractories. Currently, 70 per cent of the refractory is consumed by the sector. The vision of doubling the steel capacity in the next 6-7 years requires focused attention on the development of the key raw material," Ministry of Steel Joint Secretary Abhijit Narendra said during a recent meeting with industry stakeholders in Kolkata. The PLI 2.0 scheme is expected to be announced soon, and consultati