Steelmakers in India expect export duties to be lifted on some, if not all, steel products.
According to Moneycontrol, the government is likely to abolish export duties on steel in stages. It is said that New Delhi will first consider removing the export duty on flat products, while the export duty on structural steel such as rebar, rope and roofing sheets will remain.
Flat products include but are not limited to hot rolled coil (HRC), cold rolled coil and sheets.
JSW Steel Joint Managing Director Seshagiri Rao told Moneycontrol that he expects the export duty to be reduced before the end of September.
Industry experts and officials are calling on the government to eliminate the levy as it increases uncertainty in the export market. They argued that the duty was a double blow to the industry as it put pressure on export margins at a time when prices began to correct in the wake of falling global coking coal prices.
Alok Sahay, secretary general of the Indian Steel Association, said at an event last week that the imposition of an export duty on steel ended up hurting steel production by 8-10 percent and impacting foreign exchange inflows into the country.
