Indian steel producers will face increased challenges in exporting their products following the US decision to impose an additional 25 percent tariff on all steel and aluminium imports announced by the Trump Administration, as over the past 12 months high steel imports into India have already dampened prices and earnings of steel producers, Moody’s Ratings said in a statement on Tuesday, February 11.
However, in another statement, India’s secretary to the ministry of steel, Sandeep Poundrik, said that the US imposition of tariffs on steel imports will not have much impact on the domestic industry as the latter enjoys a strong domestic market and the export quantity to the US is “small”.
“The US tariffs on steel will increase competition and exacerbate oversupply in other steel producing markets. Indian steel producers will face increased challenges in exporting their products,” Moody’s said.
“The US President has said about putting tariffs on steel. How much steel actually do we export to the US? We produced 145 million mt of steel last year, of which 95,000 mt were exported to the US. So, how does it matter, if out of 145 million mt, you are not able to export 95,000 mt,” Poundrik said. He stressed that India’s robust domestic demand would continue to drive its steel industry.
India’s domestic market itself is so strong with growing consumption that the steel industry will find it difficult to cater to the consumption in the coming years, he noted.
