In a presentation at AMM and WSD’s annual Steel Success Strategies conference in New York this week, Sanjay Jayram, Executive VP of Sales and Marketing for JSW Steel Limited, said that India’s domestic steel industry is following a strong growth path.
The Indian steel industry, Jayram said, makes up 6.1 percent of the country’s industrial output and 2 percent of the country’s GDP, with India now the third largest steel producing country in the world. Major demand drivers include infrastructure, construction, automotive, and engineering, with government initiatives including the “Make in India” program providing momentum to steel demand growth.
“Robust industrialization and favorable demography will catalyze growth of the economy,” Jayram said, adding that upgrades to technology and new product development will “help sustain volume and value.”
However, Jayram said there are still challenges to the Indian steel industry, on both the supply side and demand side. Supply side challenges include high cost of capital, raw material security and price volatility, global excess capacity, and logistics. Demand side challenges include low steel intensity, slow growth in demand, threat from imports, and global competitiveness.