Low steel prices may hinder capacity expansion in India

Low steel prices caused by dumping in the global market will negatively affect India’s goals of increasing its steel capacity. This was stated by the country’s Ministry of Steel, Reuters reports.

India, the world’s second-largest steel producer, intends to increase its steel capacity to 300 million tons by 2030, up from about 180 million tons at present.

“If adequate domestic capacity is not created, the country will become a net importer of steel and will be dependent on imports to build its infrastructure,” the ministry said in a statement.

Low steel prices, the ministry said, have affected both large and smaller producers. Although the total volume of imports of steel products is insignificant compared to total consumption in the country, cheaper steel from abroad leads to lower domestic prices.

India’s Ministry of Steel is advocating the introduction of a safeguard duty or a temporary tax to curb growing imports. Leading steel companies in the country, such as JSW Steel, Tata Steel, ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India, have expressed concern about the influx of cheaper steel products from China.

India has increased imports of rolled steel products to a 7-year high of 5.7 million tons since the beginning of the 2024/2025 fiscal year (April-October 2024). China is the key supplier of rolled steel to the Indian market. Steel consumption in the period reached a 7-year high of 85.7 million tons.

As GMK Center reported earlier, India needs to invest $120 billion to reach its target steel production level of 300 million tons by 2030.