India imported 0.5 million metric tons of finished steel in April 2025, marking an 11.3 percent year-on-year decline. At the same time, the exports of India’s finished steel also posted a big decline in the same month.
India is the second-largest producer of crude steel in the world. To protect its steel industry from the dumping of cheap steel from China, India has imposed a 12 percent duty on steel imports.
Decline in imports from China
India imported a total of 0.1 million metric tons of finished steel from China in April 2025. In comparison, India’s finished steel imports from China have gone down by 26.5 percent in the month of April.
While China has posted overall good profits and a rise in exports in its crude steel sector, against the expectations of analysts for growth, China’s crude steel output fell by 7 percent in April against the previous month.
Import from other countries
India’s finished steel imports from Japan dropped by 60 percent, YoY, in April. The total finished steel imports from Japan stood at 85,600 metric tonnes in April.
South Korea, which is the biggest exporter of finished steel to India, exported a total of 0.15 million metric tonnes of finished steel in April. Additionally, India’s finished steel imports from South Korea saw a YoY increase of 2.4 percent in April.
Furthermore, India’s finished steel imports from Germany and France saw a high growth in April. India’s total steel imports from Germany stood at 36,600 metric tons in April. This is a 5x YoY increase in the finished steel imports from the country. Similarly, the steel imports from France saw a 10x YoY growth in April, totalling 30,300 metric tons.
From the two European countries, India mostly imported plates, which are used in heavy machinery manufacturing, construction, and transportation.
India’s finished steel exports in April
India produced 12.4 million metric tons of finished steel in April. Of the total production, India exported 0.4 million metric tons of finished steel in April 2025. On a year-on-year basis, the country’s finished steel exports were down by 25.7 percent in the month.
European countries, Italy and Belgium, which are the primary markets for Indian finished steel exports, imported less finished steel from India in April. India’s finished steel exports to Italy were down by 60.4 percent, YoY, in April. Similarly, India’s finished steel exports to Belgium were down by 6 percent YoY.