The price of steel will continue to move upwards on "good demand" and as the supply chain remains affected amid the Ukraine-Russia conflict, according to industry consultancy SteelMint.
The prices in the international market have moved up by about $135 a tonne and are moving up since the conflict started in the last week of February, SteelMint founder and CEO Dhruv Goel told PTI on Tuesday.
“In the domestic market, prices of hot-rolled coil (HRC) in the first week of March were in the range of ₹68,000-69,000 a tonne against ₹65,500-66,500 tonne in the previous week; while for cold-rolled coil (CRC), at ₹73,000-74,0000 a tonne as compared with ₹71,000-72,000 tonne in the preceding week, he said.
"The conflict has impacted the movement of raw materials as well as goods. There is a good demand for steel. We anticipate these two factors will further improve the prices," he said.
According to industry figures, before the conflict between Russia and Ukraine began, the oil prices stood at $90 a barrel. The rates are now trading near $120 a barrel and there is a projection that it would reach $180 a barrel in a few days.
As oil prices have gone up, freight rates of cargo ships, which currently stand at $20,000 a day, are likely to reach $30,000 per day.
Similarly, coal prices are also rising. Coking coal has breached the $550-a-tonne mark, from $250 a tonne before the crisis began.
India meets 85% of its coking coal requirement from imports.
Besides coking coal, iron ore is another key raw material used in steel making by companies in India.
According to ICRA, the domestic steel demand is expected to grow at 7-8% in FY2023 on the back of an estimated growth of 11-12% in FY2022, supported by the government's large infrastructure spending plans.
