The government today said that 8.22 million tonnes of finished steel was exported during April-January of 2017-18. As against exports, the imports were lower at 6.45 MT during the said period, Minister of State for Steel Vishnu Deo Sai said in a reply to the Lok Sabha.
India had exported 8.24 MT during 2016-17 and 4.08 MT in 2015-16, he said. The country imported 7.23 MT in 2016-17 and 11.71 MT during 2015-16.
To a question related to volatile price of iron ore - a key raw material used in steel making - the minister said that government does not control or regulate the pricing of iron ore or any other raw materials in the country. There is a transparent policy of mineral allocation and its extraction.
Further, steel manufacturers are free to import any raw material based on their financial consideration, he added.
