Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Steel, H. D. Kumaraswamy, has welcomed the Finance Ministry’s decision to impose a 12% safeguard duty on imported non-alloy and alloy steel flat products, calling it a move that will bolster the domestic industry and ensure fair competition.
Taking to social media platform X (formerly Twitter), the Minister stated, “I welcome the 12% safeguard duty on imported steel flat products. This will protect Indian manufacturers, ensure fair competition, and boost domestic industry.”
The government announced the temporary tariff late Monday, aimed at countering a sudden surge in imports that could potentially harm local steel producers. The duty is effective immediately and will remain in place for 200 days, unless revoked or amended earlier.
According to the notification issued by the Finance Ministry, the safeguard duty applies specifically to shipments priced below the set import thresholds, ranging between USD 675 and USD 964 per tonne—across five categories of steel flat products. These include Hot Rolled Coils, Sheets and Plates; Hot Rolled Plate Mill Plates; Cold Rolled Coils and Sheets; Metallic Coated Steel Coils and Sheets; and Colour Coated Coils and Sheets, whether or not profiled.
Shipments imported at or above these specified CIF (Cost, Insurance, Freight) prices will be exempt from the additional duty.
The measure follows a similar move by the United States, which recently imposed a flat 25 per cent duty on steel imports from all countries. The Indian safeguard duty primarily targets dumping practices, especially from countries like China, which ranks as the second-largest exporter of steel to India, after South Korea.
In December 2024, the Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) launched an investigation into the sharp rise in imports of steel flat products, used extensively across the automotive, construction, and manufacturing sectors.
While large domestic steelmakers had lobbied for protectionist measures, citing threats to their market share, steel-consuming industries, especially MSME exporters in the engineering sector, raised concerns that the added duty would inflate raw material costs and impact competitiveness in global markets.
Safeguard duties are intended as temporary trade remedies, designed to shield domestic industries from sudden import surges that could threaten their viability.
(With ANI inputs)
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