India’s Finished Steel Exports Surge 64%

Finished steel export jumped by 64.2% to 0.770 million ton in July compared to 0.469 MT in the same month last year. Import of finished steel also shot up by 42.2% at 0.798 MT in July this year compared to 0.561 MT in the same month last year, a report said.

“India was a net importer of total finished steel in July 2017 but maintained its net exporter status for the cumulative period, i.e. during April-July 2017,” it said, NDTV reported.

During April-July 2017, export of total finished steel was up by 65.5% at 2.807 MT compared to 1.696 MT during the same period of last fiscal, the report by joint plant committee, which collects data on iron and steel industry in the country, said.

Import of total finished steel at 2.505 MT in April-July 2017 was up by 4.7% as compared to 2.393 MT in the year-ago period, it added.

The consumption of total finished steel grew 3.7% to 6.905 MT in July 2017 over 6.660 MT in July last year.  However, the overall consumption was down 4.2% in July as compared to 7.210 MT in June 2017, the report said.

During April-July 2017, consumption of total finished steel in India rose by 4.4% to 27.911 MT from 26.736 MT in the same period of last year, under the influence of rising production for sale and imports, the report said.

Empowered by the ministry of ateel, the JPC is the only institution in the country that collects data on the Indian iron and steel industry. India is third largest producer of crude steel after China and Japan. The country is now looking to grab the second spot.

Forex Reserves

India’s forex reserves are expected to hit $400 billion by September, driven by robust capital inflows and weak credit offtake, says a Morgan Stanley report, PTI reported.

According to the global financial services major, Indian forex reserves are at an all-time high and have risen at the fastest pace since 2015. As of August 4, forex reserves hit a record high of $393 billion.

“If the pace of forex reserves is similar to that of the past four weeks, forex reserves would hit $400 billion by September 8,” Morgan Stanley said in a research note, adding “the gain in India’s forex reserves has been one of the strongest within the Asia, ex-Japan region, in the past 12 months”.