India – A Favored Destination for Metal Producers

November 10, 2010 11:14 am

India – A Favored Destination for Metal Producers
 
Frost & Sullivan’s study on manufacturing excellence in the Metals sector delves into the importance aspects of the metals industry, its drivers and challenges.
 
Manufacturing excellence is the need of the day and manufacturing industries are constantly exploring new initiatives and technologies not only to remain competitive in the market, but also to sustain their growth and combat challenges faced. The Metals industry is no exception in this respect; it plays an important role in any economy because of its influence and application in a number of sectors such as chemical, engineering, agriculture, automobiles, infrastructure, electronics, and other manufacturing sectors.
 
According to a Frost & Sullivan’s study on manufacturing excellence in the Metals sector, Asia accounts for nearly 56% of the total world crude steel production. India is the primary producers’ market in the ferrous industry, which is oligopolistic and dominated by two large integrated producers – the Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) in the public sector and Tata Iron and Steel Company (TISCO) in the private sector. However, the industry is highly fragmented in the downstream sector of secondary producers both in China and in India. Non–ferrous metals industries include a variety of metals like aluminium, copper, zinc, lead, tin, etc. Among the non–ferrous base metals, Aluminium, the ‘poor man’s silver’, has found wide application in various sectors like automotive, aviation, railways, electricity, etc., due to its properties such as light weight, good conducting capabilities, and long durability. Overall, the non–ferrous Metals industry in Asia is highly fragmented and yet to exploit its full potential.  
 
Growth drivers seen in the metal sector are Government policies, consolidation, favorable conditions and growing demand and consumption. Under Government policies, it is been noted that up to 100% Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is allowed under the automatic route for mining of metal ores in India. FDI policies have made global leaders like Arcelor–Mittal and POSCO evince interest in setting up plants in India. Moreover, thrust on infrastructure by the Government of India (GoI) is expected to boost steel demand and the Government has earmarked 46% of total plan allocations in the Union Budget (2010–11) towards infrastructure development. 

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