The National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC), the state-run iron-ore producer, may increase prices, but “only slightly”, for local steel mills this quarter as the country seeks to curb inflation.
The company—Asia’s third-largest producer of the material—will charge more for exports to Japanese and Korean mills next quarter, Finance Director Swaminathan Thiagarajan said, without giving details of price gains.
“We cannot raise local prices to the extent of export prices due to inflationary pressure,” Thiagarajan said.
Inflation, unexpectedly, accelerated to 10.16 per cent in May.
NMDC—based in Hyderabad—raised the price of the so-called iron-ore fines for Indian clients an interim 35 per cent to Rs 2,600 a tonne from April 1. It doubled its prices for Japanese and South Korean mills including Nippon Steel Corp and Posco to more than $122 a tonne.
NMDC rose 0.4 per cent to Rs 263.30 by 2.31 pm in Mumbai trading.