Punjab firms gain little from steel price cuts

Small and medium enterprises of Ludhiana have not gained much from the recent reductions in the prices of steel, industrialists say. And, steel is responsible the inflation, they stress.

P D Sharma of the Apex Chamber of Commerce and Industry says steel makers have announced lower reductions of Rs 500"�1,000 per tonne, but they are exporting steel instead of supplying to domestic consumers.

The chamber has written to the Prime Minister and finance minister to discourage steel exports in view of severe shortages at home. However, delay in action is fuelling inflation, industry sources say.

The Ludhiana chamber says that steel makers wrongly blame high international prices of steel.

Posco has raised the price of steel but in that case input prices also rose. Inflation in India was due to cost-push factors and not demand-pull.

Producers of all commodities are raising their prices. They say that they expect more from the Prime Minister, who is an economist and can understand the implications of this for small and medium industries.