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India's steel consumption in the first six months of the current fiscal remained flat, showing just 0.8% year-on-year growth due to poor offtake by construction and automobile sectors.
The consumption of finished steel, a key indicator to the health of an economy, was at 36.58 million tonnes (MT) during the April-September period of the current fiscal, data compiled by Joint Plant Committee (JPC), a unit of the Steel Ministry, has revealed.
India, world's fourth largest steel maker, had consumed 36.28 MT steel during the April-September period of the last fiscal.
Coupled with beleaguered auto sector, the bad run of the construction sector, which consumes maximum steel, is taking a toll on the steel consumption, a sectoral analyst said, adding good times are ahead with the elapse of the monsoon season.
Meanwhile, imports of steel during the April-September period has also come down by 25.2% to 2.9 MT against 3.9 MT a year earlier.
Exports were also down by 0.4% to 2.3 MT.
Total production, however, was up by 6.2% to 40.3 MT during the April-September period compared to 38 MT during the same period last fiscal, JPC data revealed.
SAIL's production was up by 5.8% at 5.28 MT. RINL produced 11.8% to 1.38 MT. Tata Steel's production was up by 27.4% to 3.65 MT.
World Steel Association (WSA) has recently slashed its projection for India's steel demand growth to 3.4% for the current year from the earlier forecast of 5.9%.
"In India, steel demand is expected to grow by 3.4% to 74 million tonnes (MT) in 2013 following 2.6% growth in 2012 as high inflation and structural problems are constraining steel using sectors' activities," the industry association had said in its short-range outlook released earlier this month.
WSA had in April projected India's steel demand growth at 5.9% for 2013, pinning hopes on monetary easing and investment activities.
