Steel prices drop by Rs12,000 per ton

Domestic prices of steel products fell below the Rs.250,000 per ton mark after a sudden decrease in raw material costs in the international market. 

According to JS Research, Domestic steel producers, namely Aisha Steel Mills Limited (ASL) and International Steels Limited (ISL) announced the slash in prices of Hot Dipped Galvanised Coil (HDGC) and Cold Rolled Coil (CRC) by Rs.12,000 per ton. The new costs are Rs.237,900 per ton for HDGC and Rs.230,550 per ton for CRC.

Due to recent hikes in project completion costs, the construction industry had been facing challenges in pricing its housing units, with steel prices especially rising significantly in the past few months. 

Another issue faced by steel companies in the last two years was the high freight cost of imported containers, as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. 

The abrupt change in steel prices can be attributed to the decrease in the cost of scrap, as well as the dip in domestic demand. Analysts also suggest that the rupee appreciation in the past 10 days also contributed to this decline in domestic steel prices.