Steel demand grows by 6.6% in Apr-Aug, trend to continue: SAIL

State-run SAIL today said the domestic steel demand will go up further from 6.6 percent witnessed during April-August period with the onset of the festival season.

“In India, during the April-August period of the current fiscal, steel demand has gone by 6.6 percent against the global demand growth of less than three percent. The ensuing festival season will be a brisk one. Demand will further go up,” SAIL Chairman C S Verma said.

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Verma said the demand has to pick up in India given the fact that the per capita consumption of steel in the country at 55 kg is far less the world average of 214 kg. Consumption is even lesser in rural India, where more than 50 percent of the population lives.

The government’s thrust on building infrastructure in the ongoing Five-Year Plan with $1 trillion investment is going to give a huge boost to the steel demand, he added. “India is the demand centre for steel. I am quite bullish as far as the Indian steel sector is concerned,” Verma said.

India’s steel consumption grew by 5.5 percent to around 70 million tonnes in the last fiscal. The country has about 90 million tonnes steel making capacity now and is to grow to around 200 million tonnes by 2020.

On steel prices, Verma said following some correction in the last two months, it is likely to remain stable at the current level in the coming days. “I personally feel that prices will remain more or less stable in the time to come. There have been some corrections in the last two months because of of the global scenario,” Verma said.

PTI