India's Steel Ministry Proposes Additional Tax on Cheap Imports
June 16 (Bloomberg) -- India's steel ministry proposed imposing a temporary additional tax on cheap imports, accepting local steelmakers' demand to curb dumping.
"We would certainly like to see that our steel industry flourishes and not face any unfair competition," Steel Minister Virbhadra Singh told reporters in New Delhi today. "We have made some proposals" to the finance ministry.
Imports of steel rose 21 percent to 528,000 metric tons last month from a year earlier, Steel Secretary Pramod Rastogi said last week, citing ministry figures. Some countries are offering prices lower than those in India, which is leading to the spurt in imports, he said, without identifying the nations.
Producers from Ukraine and Russia are willing to sell in India at below-market prices, Seshagiri Rao, chief financial officer at India's third-largest producer, JSW Steel Ltd., said in an interview on June 11. China's move to offer a rebate on steel exports will also hinder the Indian steelmakers, he said.
The government had last month rejected a plea by JSW Steel, Steel Authority of India and rivals that a 25 percent duty be imposed in addition to the existing 5 percent import tax.
"We are watching the data," Rastogi said on June 11.
To contact the reporters on this story: Debarati Roy in Mumbai at droy5@bloomberg.net Pratik Parija in New Delhi at pparija@bloomberg.net .
June 16 (Bloomberg) -- India's steel ministry proposed imposing a temporary additional tax on cheap imports, accepting local steelmakers' demand to curb dumping.
"We would certainly like to see that our steel industry flourishes and not face any unfair competition," Steel Minister Virbhadra Singh told reporters in New Delhi today. "We have made some proposals" to the finance ministry.
Imports of steel rose 21 percent to 528,000 metric tons last month from a year earlier, Steel Secretary Pramod Rastogi said last week, citing ministry figures. Some countries are offering prices lower than those in India, which is leading to the spurt in imports, he said, without identifying the nations.
Producers from Ukraine and Russia are willing to sell in India at below-market prices, Seshagiri Rao, chief financial officer at India's third-largest producer, JSW Steel Ltd., said in an interview on June 11. China's move to offer a rebate on steel exports will also hinder the Indian steelmakers, he said.
The government had last month rejected a plea by JSW Steel, Steel Authority of India and rivals that a 25 percent duty be imposed in addition to the existing 5 percent import tax.
"We are watching the data," Rastogi said on June 11.
To contact the reporters on this story: Debarati Roy in Mumbai at droy5@bloomberg.net Pratik Parija in New Delhi at pparija@bloomberg.net .
No comments:
Post a Comment