NEW DELHI: The Federation of Indian Mineral Industries (FIMI) has urged the Union Commerce and Industry Minister, Anand Sharma, to remove 5 per cent export duty on iron ore lumps, a key input in steel-making, stating that the tax barrier along with high railway freight had out-priced the ore in the global market.
Uncompetitive pricing
In a letter to Mr. Sharma, FIMI Secretary General R. K. Sharma has said that the demand for Indian iron ore lumps had started shrinking in Chinese spot market as Australian and Brazilian variants were low-priced.
While freight on board (f.o.b.) price of Indian iron ore lumps in Chinese spot market is hovering around $54-56 a tonne, the delivered price of Australian and Brazilian ore starts at $51 a tonne.
Of the country’s total iron ore exports of 105 million tonnes last fiscal, about 88 per cent was shipped to China which is the biggest export destination for Indian ores.
However, due to uncompetitive pricing, exports to China dipped by over 20 per cent during May this year, Mr. Sharma said.
Even as the miners want export duty on iron ore to go, the Steel Ministry is pushing for higher tax barrier to curb overseas shipments and encourage value-addition of the raw material by steel mills.
Source : The Hindu