MUMBAI: Indian steelmakers mostly fell amid uncertainty whether the government would raise import duties on the alloy and whether any increase would be enough to protect the industry.
Shares in Jindal Steel and Power fell as much as 6.7 percent, while Tata Steel and JSW Steel also underperformed the broader NSE index which rose 0.62 percent to close at a record high.
In Saturday’s annual budget, Indian Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said the tariff rate on steel imports would be increased to 15 percent from 10 percent, cheering Indian producers which have been battered by cheap Chinese metal.
However, Jaitley also said there would be “no change in the existing effective rates of basic customs duty on these goods”. A finance ministry official was not immediately available to clarify the discrepancy, but companies themselves, optimistic earlier, said they were now not pricing in any changes.
“Since there is no increase in import duty, it is our apprehension that the surge in steel imports will continue unabated unless adequate measures are taken,” said H. Shivramkrishnan, chief commercial officer at Essar Steel.V
