Even as the producers of cold-rolled coils and other downstream products are up in arms against recent price hikes by the hot-rolled steel producers, a further rise in prices seems imminent as the global steel majors have announced higher hot-rolled coil prices (Indian steel prices follow worldwide steel prices).
Industry expects that global hot-rolled coil prices will go up from $360 per tonne to $400 per tonne shortly. Thus, Nucor Corp of the US has raised the hot-rolled coil price by $30 per tonne for deliveries during the April-June quarter of 2003.
Tokyo Steel Manufacturing, Japan's top electric steelmaker, has raised the list prices of all items by a similar margin for shipments in March 2003.
Posco of South Korea and Corus Strip Products of the UK too have announced a hike in hot-rolled coil prices for the coming months.
As a result, the domestic hot-rolled coil producers -- Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL), Tata Steel, Essar Steel, Jindal Vijaynagar Steel and Ispat Industries -- are expected to raise their prices by up to Rs 1,000 per tonne from the existing Rs 18,000-18,500 per tonne from March 1.
"The hot-rolled coil prices are going up globally and this is reflected in the domestic prices also. We are just following the global trends," a Tata Steel official said.
"We are going ahead with the price increase on March 1," an Essar Steel official added.
The country's cold-rolled steel producers said they had not been able to pass on the rise in hot-rolled coil prices to their consumers.
As a result, any hike in prices is eating into their bottomline. This, however, is contested by the hot-rolled coil producers. J J Irani, chairman, Indian Steel Alliance, said the hike in prices this year is a mere correction.
"Last year the prices had gone down to abnormal levels. However, this year, prices have shown signs of recovery," he said.
Irani further said there had been no shortage of steel as claimed by the cold-rolled producers. "Last year the prices had dropped, but the auto sector or the consumer durable sector did not drop their prices. Therefore, they have no reasons to complain," he added.
"The price hikes are just corrections of the past year's drop and the price hikes have been well absorbed," a SAIL official said.
Imminent hike
