India consumed 99.3 million tonnes of finished steel in the first seven months of 2026-27, up 7.5% from a year earlier, as demand growth continued to outpace domestic production.
October consumption rose 6.6% to 14.3 million tonnes. Finished-steel output increased 2.8% during the month to 13.4 million tonnes and 3.9% in April–October to 95.5 million tonnes, according to provisional Joint Plant Committee data released by the Ministry of Steel.
Imports filled part of the gap
Finished-steel imports reached 0.76 million tonnes in October, 65.8% above the year-earlier level. Their value more than doubled to ₹8,803.6 crore.
Across April–October, imports increased 28.9% by volume to 4.90 million tonnes. Exports rose 15.5% over the seven-month period to 3.98 million tonnes but fell 32% in October to 0.44 million tonnes. India remained a net importer by quantity for the period.
The trade data matters because a wider domestic demand-production gap can support import volumes, while currency movements, global prices and trade measures affect the landed cost.
Prices remained elevated
Average second-half October prices across four metro cities rose from September and were substantially higher than a year earlier. Ten-millimetre TMT bar prices were ₹66,645 per tonne, up 26% year on year.
Hot-rolled coil was ₹77,620 per tonne, 31.6% higher, while cold-rolled coil reached ₹87,010, up 33.3%. The data include GST and therefore should not be treated as mill realisations.
Key production and demand indicators
- October crude-steel output: 14.1 million tonnes, up 0.7%
- April–October crude-steel output: 99.1 million tonnes, up 2.6%
- April–October finished-steel output: 95.5 million tonnes, up 3.9%
- April–October consumption: 99.3 million tonnes, up 7.5%
- April–October imports: 4.90 million tonnes, up 28.9%
- April–October exports: 3.98 million tonnes, up 15.5%
What industrial buyers should watch
Construction, automotive and capital-goods companies should assess whether elevated steel prices can be passed through to customers. Businesses with fixed-price contracts face greater margin risk when input prices move faster than their escalation clauses.
Steelmakers will focus on capacity utilisation, raw-material costs and the product mix needed to defend margins while imports rise. The demand growth is constructive, but higher consumption does not automatically translate into equal pricing power for every producer.
The producer split shows the breadth of domestic supply. Seven large groups accounted for 51.4 million tonnes of finished-steel production in April–October, while remaining producers contributed 44.1 million tonnes. Smaller mills can face different scrap, power and financing costs from integrated producers, so the headline price movement will not affect every balance sheet equally.
Raw-material signals were mixed in October. NMDC’s benchmark iron-ore prices were unchanged from September, MOIL’s manganese-ore lump price increased 5%, and HMS II scrap fell 3.5%. The combination can shift competitiveness between ore-based and scrap-based routes.
Demand composition will also matter in the coming months. Infrastructure orders support long products such as TMT bars, while autos, appliances and capital goods influence flat-steel requirements. Strong aggregate consumption can therefore coexist with uneven utilisation by product line.
The next monthly release will show whether October’s sharp import growth persists and whether domestic output begins to close the gap with demand.
Source: Ministry of Steel release published by the Press Information Bureau on 5 November 2026.
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