India’s steel trade trends diverged in August, with exports jumping more than 50 per cent year-on-year even as imports fell sharply, yet the country turned net importer of the alloy.
Provisional data from the Steel Ministry shows finished steel exports rose 54 per cent to 0.53 million tonnes (mt) in August, while imports declined 31 per cent to 0.67 mt, making India a net importer by 0.14 mt for the month.
For the April–August period, imports dropped 33 per cent to 2.5 mt, while exports advanced 16 per cent to 2.2 mt, leaving India a net importer by 0.3 mt. The country had been a net exporter for the past two months.
On a sequential basis, both flows saw an uptick in August, with imports surging 47 per cent month-on-month and exports rising 9 per cent. Market participants attributed the pressure on exports to aggressive Chinese supplies, weak European demand, and surplus, low-priced availability in West Asia.
Finished steel production climbed 13 per cent in August to 13.35 mt, while crude steel output was up 11 per cent at 13.8 mt. Private players contributed 85 per cent of the production. Consumption rose nearly 9 per cent year-on-year to 13.69 mt, and was 2.3 per cent higher than July.
Between April and August, crude steel output stood at 68.3 mt (up 12 per cent), finished steel production at 65 mt (up 10 per cent), and consumption at 66 mt (up 8 per cent).
Consumption is expected to pick up momentum after the monsoon season, from late September onwards, according to industry sources.