HR steel prices hiked

By Our Corporate Bureau | 03 Mar 2004

New Delhi: Domestic steel manufacturers have hiked the prices of hot rolled (HR) steel by around Rs 3,000-Rs 4,000 per tonne on Tuesday. This is despite the written undertaking given by the Indian Steel Alliance (ISA) that prices would be kept under check.

The ISA had assured the government that HR steel would be kept within the Rs 27,000-per tonne price band till June and that the small sector would be supplied at a concession of Rs 1,500-Rs 2,000 per tonne.

According to market sources, the steel producers appear to have taken advantage of "ambiguity" in the written undertaking that the ISA had given to the government and the current hike to Rs 27,000 per tonne does not violate the commitment.

Market sources say that all the producers who have effected the price hike have done so through verbal communication to their stockyards. SAIL, however, is not clear as to whether it too, will be able to effect a similar price increase, company officials said. "But if we are unable to do so, our officials will come under immense pressure as there will be a substantial premium on our products. There will be pressure from various quarters on our officials to sell steel to favoured persons and being a Government-controlled company, we have apprehensions, more so because it is election time," the officials said.