Tata Steel reported an increase in India production for the second quarter of the current fiscal on the back of increased production at Tata Steel Bhushan Steel.
Sales volume however declined by an almost equal volume compared to last year but jumped since last quarter due to higher sales from Bhushan.
Production at Tata Steel India increased by 4.7% year on year at 4.50 million tonnes while it was flat compared to last quarter. Sales went down by 4.16% at 4.14 million tonne compared to last year.
In Europe, both the production and sales were flattish compared to last year. Compared to last quarter production at Tata Steel Europe went down by 7% at 2.46 million tonne due to “weaker market conditions, planned summer shutdowns and unplanned outages,” Tata Steel said. Sales compared to last quarter were flattish.
Global business confidence in the second quarter remained weak on account of uncertainties due to the US-China trade war. In India this was exacerbated by a fall in auto demand which also coincided with a seasonally weak monsoon quarter.
“The recent rate cuts by the Reserve Bank of India are a welcome step to improve liquidity though transmission of the rate cuts is not evident and hence the credit off-take has not yet picked up. However, as the monsoon season comes to an end and the festive season starts, an improvement in sentiment is expected to trigger a pick-up in consumption and thus, steel demand,” Tata Steel said.
