Nitin Gadkari sees gains from cement and steel units

The Minister of MSMEs and Roads, Nitin Gadkari, harshly criticized the steel and cement industries on Saturday for raising prices, without valid reasons.

Claiming that these two industries appeared to be taking unfair advantage of government initiatives to help companies, Gadkari wondered what led steel companies to raise prices by 55% in the past six months. He indicated that there were no proportional increases in the price of key inputs such as energy and raw materials.

Gadkari accused cement units of forming cartels to drive up construction material prices, even as the construction industry is struggling to recover after being hit hard by the pandemic and the shutdown.

“I decided to make all the concrete roads. He wanted to promote the cement industry. But they are only taking advantage (unfairly) of the situation and forming cartels. So now I’m allowing bitumen (for road construction), ”Gadkari said at a Ficci event.

The minister, however, said that there was nothing wrong with a businessman making a profit; in fact, that is your “fundamental right” as you are not in business for “charity”, but there must be reasons to raise prices. (ends)

Already at a 12-year high following an increase of around Rs 2,500 per ton from December 1, the price of hot rolled coil (HRC), the benchmark steel product, is expected to rise further during the month at least Rs 1,500 per ton. . According to the steel industry, the price increase is due to the increase in iron ore prices. Analysts attribute the trend to higher international prices, higher local demand, moderate production and limited imports.

After the December price hike, the wholesale price of HRC (ex-Mumbai) currently stands at Rs 48,300 per tonne, the highest since 2008, according to SteelMint. The current price is around 32% higher than in July 2020. According to Morgan Stanley, “The increase for December was largely anticipated, but our dealers’ checks suggest there is a possibility of another hike in mid-March. December”.

Recently, the Indian Competition Commission carried out raids on the offices of UltraTech Cement and two subsidiaries of the world’s largest cement manufacturer, LafargeHolcim.