India: Tata Raises Steel Prices

Indianmart:  Tata Steel is to raise transaction prices for reversing mill plate by £90 per tonne effective on all orders placed from February 1, 2011. The increase is the result of higher than anticipated international steel demand in 2010 and expected continuing demand growth this year.“All plate consuming industrial sectors are showing improvement and lead times from our mills are extending,” said Paul Parkins, Commercial Manager, Plates for Tata Steel in Europe. “Global production of steel in 2010 was 1.4 billion tonnes, an increase of 15% year-on-year, 50 million tonnes more than forecast. Industry analysts expect this growth to continue throughout 2011, with a further 6% increase in demand bringing production to 1.5 billion tonnes.” In addition, the rise in steel consumption and the recent extreme weather conditions in Australia and Brazil have led to higher spot prices for key inputs such as iron ore and coking coal. Tata Steel will continue to monitor the situation as the full impact on raw material availability and prices becomes clear.  From Indiamart News.