Chinese exporters have cut Hot Rolled Coil (HRC) offers to Indian market in order to offset the duty hike, made by Indian government. Government has recently hiked import duty on flat steel products by 2.5% (from 7.5% to 10%).
Current offers for commercial grade HRC have corrected to USD 355-360/MT, CIF India, which was at USD 360-365/MT last week.
“There will be limited impact of hike in import duty by Indian government. Offers from China have fallen to USD 355-360/MT, CIF India. However, with BIS certification made mandatory for import is a major cause of concern for Chinese steel mills and most of them do not have it. In addition, it takes about a year to get the certificate “, said an importer based in Mumbai.
Offers from Korean steel mills remain unchanged this week. 2 mm offers were heard at USD 395/MT, CIF India. Russian suppliers remained out of the market due to non-competitive offers.
BIS a Concern for Chinese Exporters
Market participants highlighted that BIS will be a major cause of worry for Chinese suppliers as Indian government will soon notify mandatory registration under Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS).
“It is expected that Indian government will soon make mandatory for steel mills to get registered under BIS. It generally takes 8 months to a year to get BIS certificate. Several applications have been applied but it will take time. Import will get affected once BIS norm come into play,” said an Indian representative of a Chinese steel mill.
Flat Steel (HR,CR & Plates) Import to India in FY15
| Countries | FY15 | % Share | Current Offers | Rate of Import Duty |
| Korea | 1.39 | 31% | 390-395 | 1.25% |
| Japan | 1.06 | 24% | 390-395 | 0.8% |
| China | 0.91 | 20% | 355-360 | 10% |
| Russia/Ukraine | 0.35 | 8% | 370-375 | 10% |
| Others | 0.77 | 17% | – | 10% |
| Total | 4.48 | 100% | – | – |
Quantity in MnT; Offers in USD/MT
*For ASEAN countries import duty is NIL
Offers on CFR India basis for 2 mm HRC (commercial Grade)
Source: JPC
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