State-owned Steel Authority of India (Sail) has recorded its highest-ever July sales last month. The steel maker’s total steel sales stood at 1.583mn mt last month. Sail’s steel sales grew by about 50pc from 1.05mt in July 2019.
The company’s cash collections have also improved successively in June and July. It adopted austerity measures and kept its borrowings below Rs500bn ($6.67bn), a monthly low in the fiscal year 2020. The steelmaker aims to reduce its borrowing further in the coming months.
In July, Sail sold 1.27mn mt of steel in the domestic market, a rise of 29pc from the prior year. Exports stood at 310,000mt, a growth of 349pc over the prior-year period.
Most Asian finished steel importers preferred cargoes from India and Vietnam for its shorter delivery period over other destinations like CIS, South Korea, and Russia in June-July.
The steelmaker’s piled up inventories during COVID-19 registered a decline with these increased sales. The raw material collection also improved.
The company focussed on catering to the urgent requirements of the Indian railway, defense, and medical sectors.