India’s total finished steel consumption grew 11.91 per cent year-on-year in December to reach 9.68 mt. During the same time, the country produced 9.32 mt of total finished steel (non-alloy, alloy/stainless), a year-on-year rise of 1.08 per cent, Minister of Steel Dharmendra Pradhan told Parliament on Monday.

Steel consumption has grown throughout the third quarter of the ongoing fiscal year, an 11 per cent rise year-on-year to reach 28.09 mt. But at 66.54MT, consumption for the nine-month period remains 15 per cent lower compared to the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year.

Rise in price

Similarly, though monthly production had surpassed pre-Covid levels in August, production during the nine-month period of April-December stood at 64.62 mt, still 14 per cent lower year-on-year. The October-December quarter has been specially positive for the industry, with steelmakers posting high profits on the back of a rise in steel prices and the economic recovery.

The Budget announcements such as “capex allotment of ₹1,07,100 crore for Railways, ₹2.87 lakh crore outlay for Jal Jeevan Mission, construction of roads under Bharatmala Pariyojana project, Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0, Scheme for Mega Textile Parks etc. will lead to increased demand for steel,” Pradhan said.

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