It is reported that some of the Indian steel mills, on the anticipated lines, have increased prices of various steel products by up to INR 1,000 a tonne to INR 2000 per tonne for different products

While they have cited higher costs of iron ore and increased railway freight charges (About INR 700 per tonne) as the driver for this decision, several other factors seem to have given them the courage to go for hike despite dismal demand conditions

In case of HR, the subdued imports due to unviable import parity gave them scope for this rise. However, as the demand remains sluggish, the coming days will decide the extant of actual hike absorbed by the market

In case of plates, the domestic availability was curtailed in December as one of the mills undertook capital maintenance while another was reported to be facing production issues. As a result, the plate market prices has already surged in later part of December 2013

It is also heard that some of the steel producers have hiked prices of rebar and wire rod by INR 1000 per tonne

The exact details of price hikes are awaited from various steel makers

Indian steel makers had previously hiked the prices in September by up to INR 2,500 per tonne. Steel makers have been rolling over prices since October