Metals exports witnesses sharp drop

Kolkata: Exports of ferrous and non-ferrous metals witnessed a sharp drop in recent months for more reasons than one . Exports of primary steel fell by 10.7 per cent in January 2019 and 14 per cent in the first ten months of the current fiscal. Exports of copper and copper products dropped by 76.6 per cent in January 2019 and 69.6 per cent in first the ten months. Likewise, outward shipments of zinc and products declined by 17.6 per cent in January 2019 and 29.7 per cent in the first ten months.

Even the despatches  of tin and products fell by 54.8 per cent in January 2019 and 17.4 per cent in the cumulative months of the current fiscal, going by EEPC figures. And EEPC India attributed this sharp fall to protectionist policies in the EU for import of steel products from India and the shut-down of the Thoothu-kudi plant of Sterlite Copper, among others.

In this backdrop, EEPC India is organising its flagship International Engin-eering Sourcing Show (IESS) from March 14 and 16 in Chennai, where over 300 companies from India and abroad would be participating with Malaysia being the partner country.   

EEPC India chairman Ravi Sehgal said that the cumulative impact of the fall in these four product lines is $3.542 billion for the first ten months (without any growth). Had this figure been added to the  $65 billion for the April-January period of the  current fiscal, India's exports growth would have been shot up to over 11.2 per cent than the current growth rate of over 5.5 per cent, he said.

For these metals, there was a fall in the exports by 10.73 per cent (i.e. $817.82 million) in January 2019 vis-a-vis January 2018. Cumulatively, the decline was 13.93 per cent (i.e., around $8022.3 million) in first 10 months (April-January 2019) vis-à-vis same period last year.  

What is worrying is that the declining trend in export of the key metals may continue, if EEPC projections are to be believed. Domestic refined copper production has fallen significantly during the first half of 2018-19 mainly due to the shutdown of the 400 KT, Toothukudi smelter of Sterlite which accounted for 40 per cent of the country’s smelting capacity.