India’s crude steel production in May rose by 9.5% year on year, reaching about 13.51 million tons. Finished steel production also rose by 9.6% compared to the same month last year, reaching about 13.15 million tons.
This growth in domestic production is partly attributed to the government’s imposition of a 12% safeguard duty on steel imports for a period of 200 days, which has significantly curbed import volumes.
As a result, imports of finished steel products fell sharply by 40.7% year-on-year in May, dropping to 428,000 tons—marking the second consecutive month of decline in steel imports.
Meanwhile, exports of finished steel products continued to decline for the sixth consecutive month, falling by 9.1% year-on-year to 391,000 tons, indicating ongoing weakness in global steel demand.
