Indian flat steel import increases in Jul

Indian finished flat steel imports increased by 29% m-o-m at 0.22 mn t in Jul '20 as demand from automotive manufacturers increased with the easing of restrictions in Jun '20.

Imports, however, plunged by 63% from 0.59 mn t in Jul '19.

Indian passenger vehicle sales have increased by over 70% m-o-m in July, showing swift recovery from the pandemic effect.

Hero Motocorp world's largest two-wheeler manufacturer sold a total of 5.65 lacs units in recently announced Q1 FY '21 results. Meanwhile, Maruti Suzuki posted an 88.2% m-o-m increase in total sales of 108,064 units in Jul '20.

South Korea remains the major exporter- South Korea continues to remain the major exporter of flat steel products to India at 0.09 mn t in Jul '20. Other top countries were China at 0.04 mn t and Japan at 0.03 mn t followed by Germany and France.

Mumbai port recorded higher volumes of import in Jul '20- The Mumbai port remained the busiest port with an unloading volume of 0.06 mn t in Jul '20. Chennai port recorded 0.05 mnt and Mundra port 0.06 mn t of flat steel imports in Jul '20.

Outlook- There is likely to be a good demand for the flat steel products with new infrastructure projects in the pipeline along with reconstruction projects for the flood-hit regions besides continued increase in auto-sector demand. However, the Indian steel industry is pushing the government to impose a border adjustment tax (BAT) on imported steel products to provide additional protection for domestic steel mills due to the economic slowdown caused by coronavirus-related restrictions on economic activity. Such a tax could sharply lower import volumes.