Steel production by the country's main producers dipped by about 3.4 per cent to 14.3 million tonnes in the April-January period with an exception of Tata Steel, which managed to maintain its output levels, official sources said.
State-run firms SAIL and RINL, and private sector player Tata Steel are the country's main steel producers, according to the Steel Ministry.
In the April-January period of FY08, the three companies had produced 14.8 million tonnes of steel.
In the period under review, SAIL's output declined to 8.4 million tonnes from 8.7 million tonnes while that of RINL to 2.3 million tonnes from 2.4 million tonnes. Tata Steel, however, maintained its output level at 3.6 million tonnes.
Even as the production of state-run producers, accounting for over 30 per cent of the country's total steel output, declined amid a slump in demand, private sector companies like JSW, Essar and Ispat posted a 4.2 per cent growth rate.
As per provisional data of the Steel Ministry's Joint Plant Committee, the production of 'other producers' increased to 37.2 million tonnes as against 35.6 million tonnes in the corresponding period of FY08.
The total production of finished steel also increased by a marginal 1.1 per cent to 46.8 million tonnes from 46.2 million tonnes.