“Steel producers met the top brass of steel ministry and conveyed that they also shared the government’s concern on rising prices and inadequate availability of steel,” Indian Steel Alliance President Moosa Raza said.
“Accordingly, we have assured them that we will immediately stop exports and have also extended support to the ministry’s proposal to withdraw Duty Entitled Pass Book Scheme (DEPB) on steel exports and abolition of import duty on the alloy.”
Mr Raza made it clear that the industry on it part expected the government to bring down the excise duty from 16 per cent to 8 per cent and reduce the import duty incidence on raw materials like metcoke.
“We have accepted these proposals of the government to make it known that we too are duly concerned on the rising prices and ensure availability of steel in the domestic markets,” he added. Meanwhile, arguing that domestic steel prices are lowest in the world, the ISA made it clear that any move to appoint a regulator will dampen the zeal of potential investors, especially when the stock market is witnessing see-sawing fortunes. “Indian steel prices are ruling at $800 a tonne, perhaps the lowest in the world, while international prices are over $1000. Any talk of regulating prices will tantamount to putting steel makers between the two prongs of a pincer,” Mr Raza told PTI.
Rising input costs
A regulator can at best regulate prices only at producer level but how would it address those thousands of intermediaries who would be beyond its purview, he asked pointing out that regulating price would only benefit them and encourage corruption among inspecting agencies.
Arguing that recent spate of price rise in steel sector is primarily due to soaring input costs, he pointed out that unrestrained export of iron ore was of grave concern to the industry and appeals to impose fiscal measures to contain the same have gone unheeded.