India transformed into a net importer of steel in the first eight months of this fiscal year

According to temporary data from the Joint Factory Council of India (JPC), India became a net importer of finished steel products from April to November 2023 (the first eight months of the 2023/24 fiscal year), with imports of 4.25 million tons and exports of 4.03 million tons JAC390P steel.

In fact, India remained a net exporter of finished steel products from April to October, with exports of 3.52 million tons and imports of 3.47 million tons. But in November, India's exports of finished steel products decreased by 30.8% year-on-year to 230000 tons, while imports increased by 30% year-on-year to 780000 tons. As of November, India has been a net importer of finished steel products for five consecutive months. The last time India became a net importer of finished steel products was in the 2018/19 fiscal year JAC390P steel.

According to sources, due to the lack of strong export orders in the near future, the Indian market is expected to have a pessimistic outlook on the market for finished steel products, especially flat products. A Mumbai trader stated that due to increased imports, there is an oversupply of steel in the Indian domestic market, which hinders downstream users from making bulk purchases and suppresses significant price increases. According to data from S&P Global, on December 5th, the factory price of 2.5-10mm thick hot-rolled coils in India was assessed at 55500 rupees per ton (666 US dollars per ton), unchanged from the previous day. The Indian Ministry of Steel recently stated that India's steel exports are subject to product competition from countries such as China, South Korea, and Vietnam. India's crude steel production in November was 11.76 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 11.6%. The crude steel production from April to November was 94.01 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 14.5% JAC390P steel.