Steel Minister Ram Vilas Paswan has ruled out a production cut by steel companies and will decide on steel import duty in seven days, reports CNBC-TV18 quoting Dow Jones.
Paswan also said that the global meltdown affects the Indian steel industry, but ruled out the possibility of banning iron ore exports and added that the export tax or iron ore could rise.
Commenting on the similar lines, PK Rastogi, Steel Secretary, said steel prices have gone down significantly and he expects steel prices to correct upwards now.
Rastogi said he has submitted few recommendations three to four days back to the Finance Ministry on imposing import duty on steel. However, he believes that inflation fall will strengthen case import duty levy.
Meanwhile, SK Roongta, Chairman, SAIL, the company does not plan to go slow on capex as of now, as it doesn’t see prices falling further.
However, Roongta warned that the company’s October steel product sales are below normal,adding that, November-December outlook also seems weak.
Source : Moneycontrol.com