Restrictions on imports of low ash metallurgical (LAM) coke, a key input accounting for 35-40 percent of steel production costs, are pushing up steel prices in India, according to a report of think-tank Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) on Monday, December 29.
According to the report, India’s reliance on imported LAM coke is structural, as most domestically available coal contains 14-15 percent ash and is unsuitable for efficient blast furnace steelmaking.
“While the government protects domestic steelmakers through high safeguard and antidumping duties and Quality Control Orders (QCOs) on finished steel imports, it simultaneously restricts access to LAM Coke, a non-substitutable input that accounts for 35-40 percent of steel production costs," the report said.
GTRI said that capping import volumes and imposing high duties on this essential input have driven up production costs, eroded competitiveness, and constrained capacity expansion, running counter to broader economic objectives.
Over the past year, India has progressively tightened controls on LAM coke imports through safeguard measures, quantitative restrictions (QRs), and provisional antidumping duties, creating simultaneous constraints on both volume and price.
A safeguard investigation in 2023 led to import caps, followed by country-wise QRs from January 2025 limiting imports to 1.4 million mt per half-year, a restriction later extended until December 2025.
In parallel, an antidumping probe covering Australia, China, Colombia, Indonesia, Japan, and Russia resulted in provisional duties ranging from $60 to $120 per mt in November 2025.
LAM coke is typically shipped as dry bulk with freight costs of about $20–25 per mt, container freight benchmarks—reported to be eight to ten times higher—were allegedly used, inflating landed values and dumping margins and this has resulted in duties exceeding levels justified by actual trade economics, the report said.
In the first half of 2025, steelmakers were able to secure only around 1.5 million mt of metallurgical coke against demand exceeding 3 million mt, increasing dependence on uneven domestic supplies and raising the risk of production disruptions.
With LAM coke accounting for roughly 38 percent of finished steel costs, a 20-25 percent increase in coke prices could lead to a 3-5 percent rise in steel prices, affecting margins and competitiveness in both domestic and export markets, the report added.