India's steel consumption grew by a moderate 1.3 percent to 48.62 million tonnes (MT) during the April-November period of current fiscal as compared to 48 MT in the corresponding period of the last fiscal. Domestic steel production during April-November period of the current fiscal was higher by 2.5 percent y-o-y at 55.29 MT. The major steel producer such as SAIL, RINL, Tata Steel, Essar, JSW and & JSPL together produced 29.8 MT during the reported period.
Export of total finished steel was down by 5.3 percent y-o-y during the first eight months of the current fiscal at 3.5 MT. India remained a net importer of total finished steel as imports zoomed to 5.5 MT, a 49 percent growth during the April-November period of current fiscal. Meanwhile, the domestic steel export is likely to increase in coming future as WTO has ruled against the US imposing high duty on imports of certain Indian steel products.
India is the fourth largest steel maker in the world with 81 million tonnes of production in FY14. The performance of steel industry is highly correlated to overall economic growth as steel demand is derived from construction and automobile sectors. Construction sector accounts for around 60 percent of the country's total steel demand, while the automobile industry consumes 15 percent of demand. The steel industry contributes about 2 percent of the country's GDP and employs over six lakh people. Steel Ministry has estimated that India's consumption may go up to around 176 MT by 2025-26 if the economy grows by 6.5 percent during the period between 2014-15 and 2025-26.