As covered in Part One, India’s big players in the country’s steel industry are asking mainly for an increase in the duty on cheap steel imports to rein in dumping of the material into the country.
If the steel guys are making this kind of request, can the aluminum guys be far behind?
The Aluminum Association of India, for one, has also asked the government for protection of the domestic industry.
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The group has sought an increase in the basic customs duty on aluminum products, currently at 5 percent, to help domestic players compete with their international counterparts. The AAI has also said the duty on aluminum scrap – which is nil – should be brought up to par with the duty on aluminum products, as this will help reduce the imports of aluminum scrap, which is easily recycled and used.
Scrap imports are causing a huge headache for the Indian aluminum industry.
This association also expects the government to reduce exports of bauxite in the upcoming budget by way of imposing heavy export duty on bauxite in order to maintain the supply of bauxite to the domestic industries.
One more demand is to reduce duty on furnace oil, which is the basic input for the aluminum industry, from the current 5 percent to zero as the increase in the price of furnace oil is severely impacting the industry.
Both sectors also felt that the government needs to initiate a stimulus package to perk up domestic demand, which of late had slowed down due to less infrastructure spend.
They have also urged the government to clear hurdles like delay in project approvals and environment clearances in the steel sector to stimulate growth.
Sohrab Darabshaw contributes an Indian perspective to MetalMiner.
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