Mumbai, Sept. 17 Steel imports in July surged 94 per cent to 561,000 tonnes against 289,000 tonnes registered in the corresponding period last year, according to the Mumbai-based International Business Information Services, an independent trade intelligence body.
The sharp rise in imports was led by hot-rolled (HR) sheets/coils and cold-rolled products.
HR coils/sheets imports stood at 312,000 tonnes at $468 a tonne (about Rs 23,400).
The major exporting countries include Korea, Ukraine, Brazil, Spain and Iran. HR coil prices in domestic markets in July ranged between Rs 26,000 and Rs 28,000 a tonne. About 111,000 tonnes of HR plates were imported at $631 a tonne from Romania, Ukraine and Korea.
Among cold-rolled products, CR coils of 69,000 tonnes were shipped in at $574 a tonne, CR galvanised of 36,888 tonnes at $726 a tonne, and CRGO steel (cold-rolled grain oriented) of 27,229 tonnes at $1,996 a tonne.
Over 40,000 tonnes of prime quality HR coils were imported from Brazil at $424 a tonne, Spain sold 30,000 tonnes of HR coils at $404 a tonne, and France 16,000 tonnes at $404 a tonne.
Iran and Saudi Arabia exported 24,000 tonnes and 13,000 tonnes of HR coil at $429 a tonne and $418 a tonne, respectively, while Ukraine sold 20,000 tonnes at $429 a tonne.
On a cumulative basis, flat steel imports in the first four months of this fiscal rose 44 per cent to two million tonnes (mt) against 1.36 mt logged in the corresponding year-ago period. Imports of HR sheets/coils have reached close to one mt in four months.
Steel imports into India have been on the rise since April as global steel producers hit by a demand slowdown started offering attractive discounts to Indian buyers.
Dumping may hurt
Mr Vikram Amin, Executive Director, Essar Steel, said, “while Indian steel manufacturers welcome fair competition, the dumping of cheap steel can hurt the industry in the long run.”
Steel exporting countries had the advantage of offering good discounts as their currency depreciated against the dollar. For instance, Ukrainian Hryvnia (UAH) depreciated 68 per cent against the dollar in July to UAH 7.85 against UAH 4.65 in the corresponding period last year.
“The Ukraine currency, a proxy for the East European currencies as it is better-off among others, had hit an all-time low of UAH 9.55 against the dollar in December last year. It is currently traded at UAH 8.39 and may weaken more before reversing the trend,” said an analyst.
Source : Business Line