The Hindu Business Line : Steel Ministry for re-imposition of import duty

“Though the proposal for removal of export duty was accepted, import duty was not put at that time because it was considered by the Finance Ministry that one has to keep the balance — that is look into the interest of the steel producers and consumers,” Mr Pramod Kumar Rastogi, Secretary, Ministry of Steel, said on the sidelines of a conference here on Tuesday.

It was calculated then that the price of steel had not come down to the level where it required protection for the imports, he added.

The Steel Ministry is said to have written to the Finance Ministry suggesting a countervailing excise duty (CVED). In a letter to the Finance Ministry, it said that failure to do so could put in danger the future of domestic steel companies.

The Ministry said that steel prices have reduced between 50 and 70 per cent over their peak prices in July-August in the international market and landed cost of imports of most of the items in India is less than the country’s domestic cost of production. “The global steel scenario has changed over the last few weeks and the industry is facing slump and prices have come down. In order to help the industry, the Steel Ministry has proposed to impose import duty of 10 per cent,” the Ministry said in the letter. To encourage Indian steel makers to export despite falling global prices, the Government on October 31 ordered withdrawal of export duty on certain steel products such as pig iron, iron and steel ingots, bars, rods, angles, shapes and sections.

SAIL OUTPUT

Mr Rastogi also said that Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL), the country’s second-biggest producer, may lower output of some of its products because of declining demand. “The demand for long products and hot-rolled coils in India has declined,” he said. Mr Rastogi, however, did not give specific details about production cuts that SAIL may implement.

PRICE INDEXATION

Mr Rana Som, Chairman and Managing Director of National Mineral Development Corporation, said that a system of price indexation for iron ore needs to be evolved which is acceptable by the suppliers as well as buyers. “This type of system is not there in the industry and prices are always determined by the demand at international or national level which creates confusion and indexation is a possible answer to it. Also everybody has now learnt that long term prices are not always the lower prices,” he said. Mr Som added that indexation also insulates the small buyers and producers. He also said that it may review local long-term contract prices of iron ore if spot rates decline.

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