JSWSTEEL

March 30 (Reuters) - JSW Steel Ltd JSTL.NS:

• JSW STEEL - JFE INVESTS 78.75 BILLION RUPEES FOR 25% STAKE IN JSW KALINGA

Source text: ID:nBSE6xtB5r

Further company coverage: JSTL.NS

((Reuters.Briefs@thomsonreuters.com;))

Corrects iron ore exports data in paragraph 7 to show lower vs last year, not higher

By Neha Arora

NEW DELHI, March 24 (Reuters) - India's imports of iron ore, a key raw material in steelmaking, are set to rise to a seven-year high in the fiscal year ending on March 31, driven by a shortage of high-grade ore and demand from JSW Steel JSTL.NS, analysts and industry executives said.

Overall imports are likely to reach 12 million to 14 million metric tons in 2025-26, more than doubling from a year earlier, analysts and trade officials said.

JSW Steel, India's biggest steelmaker by capacity, was a key driver of iron ore imports for its mills in the western state of Maharashtra and the southern state of Karnataka, said Lalit Ladkat, a senior analyst at London-based consultancy CRU.

A cargo of BHP's BHP.AX Jimblebar Fines iron ore is heading to India in a rare sale, driven by discounts on the product that was banned for sale in China, Reuters reported last week.

The bulk of India's iron ore imports in the fiscal year originated from Brazil and Oman, which together accounted for about 70% of total shipments, Ladkat said.

Iron ore output in India, the world's second-largest crude steel producer, is expected to reach 305 million tons in the 2025–26 fiscal year, up from 289 million metric tons a year earlier, according to commodities consultancy BigMint.

But exports of iron ore are expected to reach 29 million metric tons in 2025-26, down by 2.5 million metric tons from a year earlier, with 85% of shipments going to China, Ladkat said.

India mainly exports low-grade iron ore that is generally not used by steel mills in the country, mining officials said.

In the fiscal year that begins on April 1, India's iron ore output is expected to rise as mines ramp up production, although imports may continue depending on grade requirements and plant-level supply dynamics, said Sumit Jhunjhunwala, vice president at ICRA Ratings.

IRON ORE PELLET IMPORTS SET TO DROP

India, which has been importing cheaper iron ore pellets - processed or value-added products - from Iran since last year, is likely to see volumes decline due to the conflict in the Middle East, analysts said.

"Indian pellet imports from Iran could decline amid heightened geopolitical tensions and associated trade uncertainties, while ample domestic pellet availability is likely to constrain import demand," BigMint said.

From April to February, India imported 1.88 million metric tons of iron ore pellets, up six times from a year earlier.

(Reporting by Neha Arora; editing by Mayank Bhardwaj and Thomas Derpinghaus)

((neha.dasgupta@tr.com; X: neha_5;))

By Neha Arora

NEW DELHI, March 19 (Reuters) - India's JSW Steel Coated Products, a unit of JSW Steel JSTL.NS, has sought government intervention to secure supplies of liquefied natural gas and propane to prevent output disruptions amid shortages caused by the Iran war, according to a letter reviewed by Reuters.

"Any disruption in our production will have an adverse impact on our downstream customers and may lead to supply deficit in these sectors," the company said in its letter to the federal steel secretary on March 10.

JSW Steel Coated Products is India's largest manufacturer of coated steel products, or value-added steel goods, according to the company, and caters to sectors including food packaging, engineering and infrastructure.

JSW declined to comment.

Mounting gas shortages have already disrupted operations at some steel plants of India's top metals conglomerate JSW Group, with one unit facing a potential shutdown in the coming days, Reuters reported earlier this week.

India's small steel producers have warned of production halts due to gas shortages, Reuters reported earlier.

India has invoked emergency measures, prioritising natural gas for essential sectors after LNG shipments through the Strait of Hormuz were disrupted by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, constraining domestic supply.

(Reporting by Neha Arora; editing by Mayank Bhardwaj, editing by Andrei Khalip)

((neha.dasgupta@tr.com; X: neha_5;))

March 18 (Reuters) - A cargo of BHP's BHP.AX Jimblebar Fines iron ore is heading to India in a rare sale driven by discounts on the product that was banned for sale in China, the world's largest buyer, as part of a contract dispute with the miner.

• The vessel True Champion is carrying some 172,000 metric tons of Jimblebar Fines to Jaigarh in India, according to Kpler data. The buyer is JSW Steel, according to a source briefed on the sale
  

• True Champion was destined for China on March 9, Kpler data showed, before changing its destination to Singapore and then India over the course of the last week
  

• China's state iron ore buyer CMRG barred steelmakers and traders from purchasing Jimblebar fines in September, and has progressively expanded its restrictions to other products as it negotiates the terms of BHP's 2026 supply contract
  

• CMRG relaxed the ban for a week last Friday, allowing steelmakers to buy Jimblebar cargoes already at Chinese ports. Seaborne cargoes are still banned

(Reporting by Reuters staff, Editing by Louise Heavens)

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By Dharamraj Dhutia

MUMBAI, March 16 (Reuters) - India's JSW Kalinga Steel (JKSL) is set to tap the corporate debt market with its debut shorter-duration bond issue, before the end of this month, as it embarks to raise as much as 95 billion rupees ($1.03 billion), two merchant bankers said on Monday.

The company is likely to sell two tranches of five-year tenor each, aiming to raise 60 billion rupees and 35 billion rupees, respectively, through these bond sales, the bankers added.

The notes would be zero-coupon papers and would have put and call options.

The bonds of the company are rated AA by Crisil, and the ratings also take into account the expected credit support from JKSL's two equal joint-venture partners, JSW Steel and Japan-based JFE Steel Corporation, Crisil said.

"Most of the top mutual funds have tied up as anchor investors, and the bidding should take place by the end of this week or early next week," one of the bankers quoted above said.

The bankers requested anonymity, as they are not authorised to speak to the media, while JKSL did not immediately reply to a Reuters email seeking comment.

JSW Kalinga Steel is a 100% subsidiary of Piombino Steel Ltd, which, in turn, holds a 100% shareholding in JSW Sambalpur Steel Ltd.

These entities are formed to own and operate the steel business undertaking of Bhushan Power & Steel Ltd.

($1 = 92.5100 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Dharamraj Dhutia; Editing by Rashmi Aich)

((Dharamraj.Dhutia@thomsonreuters.com;))

.

March 14 (Reuters) - JSW Steel JSTL.NS, India's largest steelmaker by capacity, has secured a coking coal mining project in Mozambique, the company said in a statement late Friday, to ensure long-term supply of the key input for steel production.

The Mozambique project has 850 million metric tons of coking coal reserves and the mine will be developed in phases, as per the company statement.

"The first phase expected to be developed over the next two and a half years to produce 2.4 million tons per annum prime hard coking coal," the company said.

(Reporting by Shivangi Acharya; Editing by Stephen Coates)

((shivangi.acharyaHritam.Mukherjee@thomsonreuters.com))

March 13 (Reuters) - JSW Steel Ltd JSTL.NS:

• ANNOUNCES MINAS DE REVUBOÈ COKING COAL MINING PROJECT IN MOZAMBIQUE

• MDR HAS 850 MT OF RESERVES, POTENTIAL TO YIELD 250 MT OF USABLE COKING COAL

• FIRST PHASE OF MDR MINE TO BE DEVELOPED OVER NEXT 2.5 YEARS TO PRODUCE 2.4 MTPA PRIME HARD COKING COAL

Source text: ID:nBSE55f7nt

Further company coverage: JSTL.NS

((Reuters.Briefs@thomsonreuters.com;))

March 10 (Reuters) - JSW Steel Ltd JSTL.NS:

• JSW STEEL - REPORTS CONSOLIDATED CRUDE STEEL PRODUCTION OF 2.4 MILLION TONNES FOR FEBRUARY 2026

• JSW STEEL - USA OHIO OPERATIONS PRODUCTION LOWER DUE TO RAMP-UP AND WINTER STORM

• JSW STEEL - INDIAN OPERATIONS CRUDE STEEL PRODUCTION DOWN 1% YOY IN FEBRUARY 2026 DUE TO BF3 SHUTDOWN

Source text: ID:nBSE6Z05yM

Further company coverage: JSTL.NS

((Reuters.Briefs@thomsonreuters.com;))

Adds share reaction in paragraph 12

By Aditya Kalra

NEW DELHI, March 9 (Reuters) - When India's largest oil explorer opened a tender for a cement order in 2018, it sensed something was off by the competing bids coming in: all of them were exactly 7,000 rupees per metric ton.

Oil and Natural Gas Corporation ONGC.NS queried the bids and got a wry reply from an executive at India Cements. Seven was his "lucky number", he explained.

Suspicious, ONGC quietly lodged an antitrust case against three Indian cement companies.

The details of the case were outlined in a confidential investigation report and evidence that were shared with the companies in January and reviewed by Reuters, following a five-year probe that found a decade of price collusion targeting state-run ONGC.

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) report said the "cartel period" ran 12 years between 2007 and 2018 for Dalmia Cement (Bharat), a unit of India's fourth-largest cement maker Dalmia Bharat DALB.NS, and rival Shree Digvijay SRDC.NS. India Cements ICMN.NS was part of the cartel for 2017-18.

The report identified thinly concealed attempts at collusion by Indian companies, signalling a growing willingness by the regulator to scrutinise domestic firms after months of high-profile investigations into foreign giants.

The Indian cement firms' bid rigging, discussions of supply patterns and efforts to oust foreign bidders were "substantiated from strong evidences in form of communication, meetings, emails, admission," said the 90-page report.

Local media outlet Zee Business reported the basic finding of wrongdoing last year, but Reuters is the first to report the detailed tactics and evidence that underpin CCI's investigation findings.

Dalmia Bharat declined to comment citing pendency of the matter before the CCI, but has previously said it is cooperating with the authorities. India Cements, which was acquired by No. 1 player UltraTech ULTC.NS in 2024, did not respond, and neither did Shree Digvijay, ONGC or the CCI.

The cement companies have been asked to respond to the report and the watchdog will then issue a final order within months. It has powers to drop any of the investigation findings, but fines can go as high as three times the companies' profit or 10% of their turnover for each year of wrongdoing.

In fiscal year 2024-25, Dalmia Bharat recorded annual revenues of $1.5 billion, Shree Digvijay $79 million and India Cements $444 million.

After the Reuters story, shares of Shree Digvijay extended losses to fall as much as 5.4%, while India Cements was down 4.4% and Dalmia Bharat down 3.5%.

'SUPPORTED BY THE NUMEROLOGY FACTOR OF 7'

While Apple, Amazon and other foreign firms have faced intense antitrust scrutiny, the cement case highlights CCI's focus on big Indian firms from key economic sectors.

"Tech cases have been a growing focus for CCI but there is increased cognizance within the government to tackle breaches at state-run firms and in public procurement," said Gautam Shahi, a competition law partner at Indian law firm Dua Associates.

In January, Reuters reported an antitrust investigation found four major Indian steelmakers, including Tata Steel and JSW Steel, colluded on prices.

Before filing the case in 2020, ONGC noticed bids had come in at the exact same or very similar pricing in four tenders for oil well cement.

For example, the 2018 tender for 170,000 tons of cement saw all three companies quoting a price of 7,000 rupees, or 7,350 rupees per ton with taxes, for different states.

That prompted ONGC to issue a warning in late 2019, with a notice to India Cements, contained in the report, saying the identically priced bids suggested violation of competition law.

India Cements defended its bid in a written submission on its letterhead to ONGC that year, citing global trends as well as the "lucky number".

"The financial bid was also supported by the numerology factor of 7", the company letter stated.

SUBMITTING BIDS TOGETHER

The CCI's investigation puts the onus of breaches on eight top executives including former managing director of Shree Digvijay, Rajeev Nambiar; billionaire chairman of Dalmia Bharat, Y.H. Dalmia; and former managing director of India Cements, N. Srinivasan, who is also one of India's high-profile business figures. None of the executives responded to Reuters queries.

The CCI also cited Shree Digvijay senior vice president Prem R. Singh, whose testimony said "the prime objective for quoting the identical price was to allocate almost equal volumes and revenue amongst companies".

Singh visited rival Dalmia's office for "directly assisting" them in their tender filing in 2018, the CCI report said, citing messages sent by Singh to Nambiar, his then managing director. Singh did not respond to requests for comment.

Shree Digvijay and Dalmia were "actively involved" in calculating the rail freight distance of their factories from ONGC cement delivery destinations. They then bid accordingly to avoid competition and divided territories amongst themselves.

Excel sheets were also made comparing distances to decide "volume sharing" among rivals, the report showed.

TARGETING FOREIGN FIRMS

Shree Digvijay and Dalmia also targeted foreign firms who bid by flagging "prickly issues", said the report.

They repeatedly filed complaints with the Indian government about foreign bidders' lack of certification and how New Delhi should promote domestic firms over foreign ones.

Foreign bidders included Texas-based Schlumberger, the world's largest oilfield services provider now known as SLB SLB.N, UAE-based Classic Oil Field Chemicals, and Bell Weather, the report showed. The three companies did not respond to queries.

The investigators concluded that the companies tried at least once to pressure ONGC to cancel foreign bids by deciding to "restrict supply" of cement to the oil explorer, which breaches antitrust laws.

In 2019, one executive wrote to another: "Need your support in making them (ONGC) understand that they cannot throw Indian parties in bath tub."

The companies could "not digest the fact that a foreign bidder" can be awarded a tender, the CCI said.

(Reporting by Aditya Kalra; Editing by Sam Holmes)

((Email: aditya.kalra@tr.com; X: @adityakalra;))

Feb 10 (Reuters) - JSW Steel Ltd JSTL.NS:

• JSW STEEL - CONSOLIDATED CRUDE STEEL PRODUCTION OF 2.5 MILLION TONNES FOR JANUARY’26

Source text: ID:nnAZN4SFORP

Further company coverage: JSTL.NS

((Reuters.Briefs@thomsonreuters.com;))

Feb 6 (Reuters) - Tata Steel TISC.NS, India's second-largest maker of steel by market capitalisation, reported a bigger-than-expected third-quarter profit on Friday as higher sales volumes helped cushion the impact from weak steel prices.

Consolidated net profit jumped to 26.89 billion rupees ($296.66 million) in the quarter ended December 31, from 3.27 billion rupees a year earlier.

Analysts' on average had expected profit of 24.26 billion rupees, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Jefferies analysts had expected Indian steel companies to report stronger volume growth in the October–December period, driven by capacity expansions, while Systematix Institutional Equities said that higher volumes would help offset pricing pressures for Tata Steel.

Its domestic production volumes for the quarter increased by 11.4%, while delivery volumes grew 14% year-on-year, driven by capacity utilisation at its plants at Kalinganagar and Jamshedpur.

This lifted the Tata Group company's total revenue from operations by around 6% to 570.02 billion rupees.

Steel prices, however, stayed under pressure for most of the third quarter as supply outpaced demand, dragging down flat product prices, analysts at Elara Capital said.

Prices have rebounded since December, helped by the government's safeguard anti-dumping duty, which is expected to support the sector in the near term.

Last month, India imposed a three-year import tariff on select steel products to curb Chinese imports, replacing a 12% duty introduced in April for 200 days.

The longer duration is seen as offering greater certainty and protection for domestic producers, according to Sunny Agrawal, head of fundamental equity research at SBICAPS Securities.

Core profit, or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) for Tata Steel's India operations grew nearly 5% to 82.91 billion rupees.

Rival steelmaker JSW Steel JSTL.NS in January beat third-quarter profit estimates on higher sales volumes.

($1 = 90.6430 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Anuran Sadhu in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema)

((Anuran.Sadhu@thomsonreuters.com; +91 8697274436;))

** JSW Steel JSTL.NS shares up nearly 3% at 1,207 rupees

** Nifty Metal index .NIFTYMET up 2%

** Steel manufacturer's Q3 profit tops analysts' average estimate

** Systematix ("Hold"; PT: 1,162 rupees) says incremental levers such as BPSL-JFE JV, Mozambique coking coal acquisition and ongoing deleveraging are structurally positive for cash flows and return ratios in the medium term

** Jefferies ("Buy"; PT:1,169.35 rupees) expects strong sequential improvement ahead with rising prices and potential for Asian steelmaking margins to recover from a 15-year low

** Stock rated "Buy" on average by 30 analysts; median PT at 1,275 rupees - data compiled by LSEG

** In 2025, JSTL and sub-index rose nearly 29%

($1 = 91.7500 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Mridula Kumar in Bengaluru)

((Mridula.Kumar@thomsonreuters.com;))

By Neha Arora and Aditya Kalra

NEW DELHI, Jan 23 (Reuters) - Four major Indian steelmakers - Tata Steel, JSW Steel and state-run SAIL and RINL - disclosed their pricing plans to rivals and coordinated production cuts to reduce supplies, an antitrust investigation report seen by Reuters shows.

In the most high-profile antitrust case involving India's steel sector, an investigation by the Competition Commission of India found 28 firms colluded on steel prices, meaning they could face hefty fines, Reuters reported exclusively on January 6.

The investigation report into the four major companies that has not been made public shows the commission reviewed dozens of WhatsApp chats, including from groups named "Friends of Steel", "Tycoons" and "Steel Live Market" that were seized during 2022 industry raids. It analysed pricing changes, sales and production patterns.

Tata Steel TISC.NS, JSW Steel JSTL.NS and state-run Steel Authority of India Limited, or SAIL, SAIL.NS and Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited, or RINL colluded during 2018-2023, the report says.

"There is enough circumstantial evidence ... of concerted efforts by SAIL, RINL, JSW and Tata Steel," the commission report, drafted in April 2025, said.

The four companies "were influencing the market with the sensitive price information in advance," it said.

Consultancy BigMint estimates the companies account for 44.4% of India's steel market.

TATA STEEL 'CATEGORICALLY DENIES ANY WRONGDOING'

Tata Steel in a statement to Reuters said it "categorically denies any wrongdoing" and that it determines its prices independently based on prevailing market conditions and other factors.

It added it will submit its detailed responses to the competition commission.

JSW, SAIL and RINL did not respond to requests for comment from Reuters. Their executives denied wrongdoing during the investigation, the report said.

The competition commission, which does not make any cartel case details public in line with its rules, also did not respond.

WHATSAPP CHATS AND STEEL BAR TYCOONS

The steel case started in 2021 and the companies were in October asked to submit their financial details - typically asked for penalty calculations - and share any final objections.

Senior officials at the commission are reviewing the findings. They have powers to impose fines, or overturn investigation findings.

Tata, JSW, SAIL SAIL.NS and RINL were not raided in the 2022 operation, but many smaller firms and industry groups were.

India's competition commission retrieved chats from the phones of other companies' executives that referred to the pricing plans of JSW, Tata, SAIL and RINL.

The report made no mention of any message being written by the four companies' executives, but said the investigators correlated information in the chats with company's actual price changes, and found them to be in synchrony.

One message in 2022 was posted in a group called "TMT TYCOONS" - TMT refers to steel bars used in construction. It said: "TODAY SAIL INCREASED Rs. 1000pmt in HR COIL/FLAT products. As per close sources, all primary producers are likely to increase prices."

Another message from 2020 read: "All main producers like jsw, tata ... and sail planning to increase TMT price by 1500 to 2000 pmt from 1st Nov."

PRESENTATIONS AND 'CLEAR-CUT CORROBORATION'

India is the world's second-largest producer of crude steel, and demand for the alloy has risen as infrastructure spending has increased in the fast-growing major economy.

The competition commission has held JSW's billionaire Managing Director Sajjan Jindal, Tata Steel CEO T.V. Narendran, four former SAIL chairpersons and three former ones of RINL liable for price collusion, as Reuters reported earlier this month.

Some of RINL's internal government presentations pointed to the alleged collusion by the four players, the report showed.

An RINL presentation to a government committee showed that for every month between 2018-19 and 2022-23 it "submitted market prices of TMT bars of SAIL, TATA and JSW for arriving (at) the selling price of TMT bars by RINL."

Further, the commission report found that at least in 2020-21 there was a "controlled reduction in production by Tata, JSW, SAIL and RINL to the tune of 16% to 22%".

One specific RINL presentation to a government committee in 2020 showed that it internally noted there were "production cuts by manufacturers".

"These facts (are) tantamount to clear-cut corroboration/admission of allegation of production cuts by the said big steel manufacturers," the report said.

(Reporting by Neha Arora and Aditya Kalra; editing by Barbara Lewis)

((Email: aditya.kalra@tr.com; X: @adityakalra;))

Jan 20 (Reuters) - JSW Steel Ltd JSTL.NS:

• INDIA COMPETITION REGULATOR: APPROVES COMBINATION BETWEEN BHUSHAN POWER AND STEEL, JSW SAMBALPUR STEEL, JFE STEEL CORP, JSW KALINGA STEEL

Further company coverage: JSTL.NS

((Reuters.Briefs@thomsonreuters.com;;))

By Neha Arora

NEW DELHI, Jan 12 (Reuters) - India was a net exporter of finished steel in the first nine months of the financial year, with shipments reaching 4.8 million metric tons, up 33.3% from a year ago, according to provisional government data reviewed by Reuters on Monday.

The data showed that the world's second-biggest crude steel producer imported 4.65 million metric tons of finished steel in the same period.

Country-wise data on India's steel exports is expected later in the month.

In December, the government imposed an import tariff on some steel products to curb cheaper shipments, primarily from China.

The levy, locally known as a safeguard duty, will be imposed at 12% followed by 11.5% in the second year and 11% in the third year.

India produced 117.6 million metric tons of finished steel between April-December, while consumption stood at 119.3 million metric tons, the data showed.

Crude steel production during the period stood at 123.9 million metric tons, according to the data.

In January, leading Indian steelmakers raised prices of hot-rolled coils and cold-rolled coils by up to 2,000 rupees ($22.19) per metric ton, according to commodities consultancy BigMint.

Prices of hot-rolled coil ranged between 50,250 rupees per metric ton to 51,250 rupees per metric ton, the consultancy said.

($1 = 90.1413 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Neha Arora; Editing by Ronojoy Mazumdar)

((neha.dasgupta@tr.com;))

Jan 9 (Reuters) - JSW Steel Ltd JSTL.NS:

• JSW STEEL - CONSOLIDATED CRUDE STEEL PRODUCTION OF 7.48 MILLION TONNES FOR Q3 FY26

• JSW STEEL - BLAST FURNACE 3 AT VIJAYANAGAR UNDER SHUTDOWN FOR UPGRADE

Source text: ID:nBSE547lBC

Further company coverage: JSTL.NS

((Reuters.Briefs@thomsonreuters.com;;))

By Ross Kerber

Jan 7 (Reuters) - This is the weekly Reuters Sustainable Finance Newsletter, which you can sign up for here .

Happy 2026. Over the New Year holiday I read an advance copy of a book on U.S. President Donald Trump's leadership style, but I didn't expect just how central the topic would become with Saturday's capture of Venezuela's president by U.S. forces.

The timing paid off with the interview I did with the book's authors, which you can read about in this week's column below. The column contains a link for the publisher's website about the soon-to-be-published book.

This newsletter also includes coverage of an antitrust probe in India and what to look for at the Consumer Technology Association's annual CES trade show in Las Vegas, baby.

Just like last year, please follow me on LinkedIn and/or Bluesky. You can reach me via ross.kerber@thomsonreuters.com

Venezuela capture follows 'Trump's Ten Commandments' by the book

U.S. President Donald Trump's order for the U.S. military to capture Venezuela's president over the weekend looks in line with many of his other recent moves, foregoing bipartisan agreements and international alliances in favor of direct actions carried out with murky or shifting justifications.

Trump's decision-making process and management style have remained consistent, say two Yale leadership scholars in a new book, Trump's Ten Commandments. They call the president's understanding of authority that of "a tribal chieftain blended with the necessary fluidity and creative chaos of a business entrepreneur." In other words, a family businessman who should not be underestimated.

You can read my interview with Yale's Jeffrey Sonnenfeld by clicking here, and don't miss the included video Q&A.

Company news

India's Tata Steel,TISC.NS JSW Steel JSTL.NS and 26 other firms colluded on prices in breach of the country's antitrust law, a competition watchdog found according to this Reuters EXCLUSIVE report.

Even as automakers cut back on plans for electric vehicles, auto suppliers and startups are heavily pitching AI-backed autonomous driving technology, according to our PREVIEW of the CES trade show in Las Vegas.

Controversies about big tech companies' depreciation schedules are worrying, according to this REUTERS OPEN INTEREST column, citing cases including at Nvidia NVDA.O and Oracle.ORCL.N

On my radar

The owners of Chinese AI system DeepSeek agreed to improved disclosures about "hallucinations" in order to end an investigation by Italian regulators.

Hilton Worldwide Holdings HLT.N said it kicked out of its system a Minneapolis hotel that had refused bookings from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

(Reporting by Ross Kerber; Editing by David Gregorio)

((ross.kerber@thomsonreuters.com; (617) 412 0093;))

By Aditya Kalra and Neha Arora

NEW DELHI, Jan 6 (Reuters) - India's competition watchdog has found market leaders Tata Steel TISC.NS, JSW Steel JSTL.NS, state-run SAIL SAIL.NS and 25 other firms breached antitrust law by colluding on steel selling prices, a confidential document shows, putting the companies and their executives at risk of hefty fines.

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has also held 56 top executives, including JSW's billionaire Managing Director Sajjan Jindal, Tata Steel CEO T.V. Narendran and four former SAIL chairpersons, liable for price collusion over varying periods of time between 2015 and 2023, according to a CCI order dated October 6, which has not been made public and is being reported for the first time.

JSW declined to comment, while Tata Steel, SAIL, and the executives did not respond to Reuters queries. The CCI also did not respond to requests for comment.

The CCI investigation - the most high-profile case involving the steel industry - started in 2021 after a group of builders alleged in a criminal case brought to a state court that nine companies were collectively restricting the supply of steel and increasing prices.

Reuters reported in 2022 the watchdog raided some small steel companies as part of an investigation into the industry.

The probe was later expanded to as many as 31 companies and industry groups, as well as dozens of executives, the CCI's October order, reviewed by Reuters, shows. Under CCI rules, details of cases related to cartel-like activity are not made public before they have concluded.

The CCI investigation has "found the conduct of the parties to be in contravention" of Indian antitrust law and "certain individuals have also been held liable," the order stated.

The findings are a critical stage of any antitrust case.

They will be reviewed by top CCI officials and companies and executives will also have the opportunity to submit any objections or comments in a process that is likely to take several months given the scale of the investigation.

The CCI will then issue its final order, which will be released publicly.

RISK OF SIGNIFICANT FINES

India is the world's second-largest producer of crude steel, and demand for the alloy has been rising as infrastructure spending has increased in the fast-growing major economy.

JSW Steel has 17.5% of the Indian market, Tata Steel 13.3% and SAIL 10%, according to data from commodities consultancy BigMint.

In the last fiscal year to March 2025, JSW Steel reported standalone revenues of $14.2 billion, while Tata Steel's were $14.7 billion.

The CCI is empowered to impose penalties on steel companies of up to three times their profit or 10% of turnover, whichever is higher, for each year of wrongdoing. Individual executives can also be fined.

JSW and SAIL have denied the allegations before the CCI, according to two people familiar with the matter, who declined to be named because the case was confidential.

One of them said JSW had also submitted its response to the CCI, and denied the allegations.

WHATSAPP CHATS REVIEWED

The CCI opened the case after Coimbatore Corporation Contractors Welfare Association alleged in a case it brought before a Tamil Nadu state court in 2021 that steel companies had hiked prices by 55% during a six-month period to March 11 that year, and were artificially boosting prices by restricting supply to builders and consumers.

After the public prosecutor said the issue was an antitrust matter, the judge then ordered the CCI to take "appropriate action" on the complaint of the association, whose members are involved in road and highway construction.

Other companies in the CCI document that were found to have allegedly colluded on prices, were Shyam Steel Industries, state-run Rashtriya Ispat Nigam and other smaller-sized firms. Shyam and Rashtriya did not respond to Reuters queries.

The CCI has asked the steel companies to submit their audited financial statements for the eight financial years to 2023, the October order showed. The watchdog typically seeks such details to calculate potential penalties.

While the October order did not detail the evidence analysed, an internal CCI document from July 2025 said officials had uncovered WhatsApp messages exchanged between regional industry groups of steel product makers that suggested wrongdoing.

The messages "indicate that they are involved in fixing the prices/cutting down production," said the July document.

(Reporting by Aditya Kalra and Neha Arora; Additional reporting by Arpan Chaturvedi; Editing by Kate Mayberry)

((Email: aditya.kalra@tr.com; X: @adityakalra;))

Adds details throughout

By Vivek Kumar M

Dec 31 (Reuters) - Shares of major Indian steel companies climbed between 2% and 5% on Wednesday after the country imposed a three-year import tariff on select products to curb cheap shipments from China.

The levy, locally known as a safeguard duty, will be imposed at 12% in the first year followed by 11.5% in the second year and then 11% in the third year.

Tata Steel TISC.NS and JSW Steel JSTL.NS rose 2.4% and 5%, respectively, leading gainers on the benchmark Nifty 50 .NSEI index. Steel Authority of India SAIL.NS and Jindal Steel JINT.NS also added 2.5% and 3.5%.

"Post announcement of the safeguard duty, the domestic steel prices are currently at about 13% to 15% discount to the landed cost of imports from China, providing sufficient headroom for price hikes by domestic manufacturers," said Sunny Agrawal, head of fundamental equity research at SBICAPS Securities.

The move follows the Directorate General of Trade Remedies' findings of a sharp surge in imports causing injury to domestic producers.

Earlier, the government had implemented a temporary 12% duty for 200 days in April . While that shorter duration caused investor uncertainty, the new three-year window provides long-term protection for local players, according to the analyst.

The metal stocks .NIFTYMET hit a record 11,189.8 points on the day, gaining as much as 1.7%. The sectoral gauge has risen in 12 of the previous 14 sessions, supported by firm prices for copper, aluminium and silver.

A rise in commodity prices is driven by expectations of two U.S. Federal Reserve rate cuts in 2026, improved Chinese demand and supply shortages, as per analysts.

The domestic metal index has jumped roughly 29% in 2025, outperforming the Nifty 50's 10% advance.

(Reporting by Vivek Kumar M; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala, Janane Venkatraman and Nivedita Bhattacharjee)

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By Neha Arora and Manvi Pant

NEW DELHI, Dec 3 (Reuters) - India's iron ore imports hit a six-year high this year as steel mills stepped up overseas purchases to overcome shortages of high-grade ore and take advantage of lower global prices for the steelmaking raw material, analysts and trade officials said.

Iron ore imports more than doubled to over 10 million metric tons in the first 10 months of 2025 from a year earlier, Lalit Ladkat, senior analyst at London-headquartered CRU Group, told Reuters.

Between January and October, JSW Steel, the country's biggest steelmaker by capacity, emerged as the top buyer of iron ore from overseas suppliers, analysts and officials said.

Average imports during 2019–2024 were 4.3 million metric tons a year, Ladkat said.

"In 2025, demand outpaced the domestic production and availability of higher-grade ores was a big concern," Ladkat said, adding that delays in starting production at already auctioned mines were among the reasons supply growth was slowing.

Last month, the top civil servant at the Ministry of Steel ruled out any shortage of iron ore in the country.

Low import prices, along with the feasibility of importing for steel plants near ports, such as JSW Steel's plant in the western state of Maharashtra, helped boost shipments, according to a senior government official and analysts.

India has been importing iron ore mainly from Brazil, Oman and Australia.

Brazilian miner Vale VALE3.SA is preparing to meet rising iron ore demand from India, which could double its steel production by the end of the decade, CEO Gustavo Pimenta told Reuters last month.

This year, heavy rainfall in the eastern state of Odisha, which accounts for nearly 55% of India's total iron ore output, led to lower production, according to commodities consultancy BigMint.

"Imports may exceed 11–12 million metric tons in FY26 and could remain elevated next year as well if domestic production or captive sourcing does not improve," BigMint said, referring to the fiscal year to March 2026.

Iron ore output in India, also the world's second-biggest crude steel producer, rose to 289 million metric tons in fiscal 2025, from 277 million metric tons a year earlier, according to government data.

Earlier this year, the government urged steel mills to acquire iron ore mines overseas, while expressing concern over slow development in greenfield iron ore mines.

(Reporting by Neha Arora in New Delhi and Manvi Pant in Bengaluru; Editing by Mayank Bhardwaj and Janane Venkatraman)

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By Neha Arora

NEW DELHI, Nov 24 (Reuters) - India's finished steel imports during the first seven months of the financial year were down 34.1% year-on-year, according to provisional government data reviewed by Reuters on Monday.

India, the world's second-biggest crude steel producer, imported 3.8 million metric tons of finished steel during April-October and was a net importer of the alloy, the data showed.

South Korea was the biggest exporter of finished steel to India during the period, shipping in 1.4 million metric tons of finished steel, followed by China, Japan and Russia.

Domestically, steel prices were under pressure due to headwinds from weak demand and high supply, "while trading activity remained subdued in view of the ongoing festival season", the government report said.

Reuters reported in October that small steel producers were struggling with weak demand and falling prices.

India exported 3.5 million metric tons of finished steel during April-October, up 25.3% year-on-year, the data showed.

Italy and Belgium were the biggest markets for Indian steel during the period, followed by Spain, according to the data.

India's finished steel production during April-October stood at 91.6 million metric tons, while crude steel production was at 95.7 million metric tons, the data showed.

Consumption of finished steel during the period stood at 92.2 million metric tons, up 7.4% year-on-year.

(Reporting by Neha Arora; Editing by Jan Harvey)

((neha.dasgupta@tr.com;))

By Neha Arora

NEW DELHI, Oct 15 (Reuters) - India's steel mills secured only about half of their metallurgical coke needs from domestic suppliers in the first half of 2025, highlighting shortages and amplifying their calls for an easing of import curbs on the key steelmaking material.

Between January and June, India produced 1.5 million metric tons of metallurgical coke, while demand was roughly double that at 3.09 million tons, according to a source familiar with the matter and internal government data reviewed by Reuters.

India, the world's second-largest crude steel producer, introduced the import curbs in January to try to boost the local metallurgical coke industry. In June, it extended the curbs, setting country-specific quotas and capping overseas purchases at 1.4 million tons between July 1 and December 31.

STEELMAKERS CALL FOR EASING OF IMPORT CURBS

Some steel mill executives, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to talk to the media, said the latest local metallurgical coke output data raised questions about that decision.

Indian steel producers have urged the government to raise import quotas nearly sevenfold to ease what they call a critical supply crunch.

The federal Ministry of Commerce and Industry did not respond to an email seeking comment.

Last year, the automobile industry lobby also urged the government against curbs on metallurgical coke imports, warning of potential supply disruptions for auto components, according to a letter from the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers seen by Reuters.

The industry group did not respond to an email seeking comment.

Major steelmakers, including JSW Steel JSTL.NS and ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India have raised concerns about the curbs, saying they disrupt their expansion plans by making it difficult to source preferred grades locally.

Imports of low-ash metallurgical coke more than doubled in the four years before the curbs, with major suppliers including China, Japan, Indonesia, Poland, and Switzerland.

(Reporting by Neha Arora; Editing by Mayank Bhardwaj and Mark Potter)

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Sept 26 (Reuters) - India's Supreme Court approved on Friday a $2.3-billion takeover by steelmaker JSW Steel JSTL.NS of Bhushan Power and Steel.

(Reporting by Arpan Chaturvedi and Chandini Monnappa; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)

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By Neha Arora

NEW DELHI, Aug 27 (Reuters) - Indian steel producers have called on the government to sharply raise import quotas for low-ash metallurgical coke, seeking a near sevenfold increase to address what they say is a critical supply crunch, according to sources and a government document.

India, the world's second-largest crude steel producer, in June extended import curbs on low-ash metallurgical coke, a steelmaking raw material, for six months starting in July.

New Delhi also set country-specific import quotas and capped purchases at 1.4 million metric tons from July 1 to December 31.

Steelmakers have urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration to raise the import quota to 9.3 million metric tons, with the largest share of additional shipments sought from Indonesia, followed by Japan and Poland, said the sources aware of the matter.

The steelmakers' requests were recorded in a government document prepared by senior officials, which was reviewed by Reuters.

Steel firms have requested 2.6 million metric tons of imports from Indonesia, far exceeding the government's current allocation of 66,364 metric tons, according to the document.

Rapid capacity expansion by steel companies has strained met coke availability, and the abrupt policy curbs have dealt a blow to major producers, one of the sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity as deliberations were not public.

Many steel company executives have told the government that domestic met coke output is insufficient to meet demand, said the sources.

The federal Ministry of Commerce and Industry did not respond to a Reuters email seeking comments.

Major steelmakers such as JSW Steel JSTL.NS and ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India have expressed concerns over import curbs, arguing the restrictions disrupt their expansion efforts due to the difficulty in sourcing preferred grades locally.

JSW, India's largest steelmaker by capacity, met federal trade ministry officials late last month to request a higher allocation of met coke, Reuters reported earlier.

Imports of low-ash met coke have more than doubled over the past four years, with major suppliers including China, Japan, Indonesia, Poland, and Switzerland.

Earlier this year, Piyush Goyal, India's trade minister, urged steelmakers to source met coke locally.

The federal Ministry of Steel has also supported the import restrictions, saying local supplies of met coke are sufficient to meet demand, Reuters reported earlier.

(Reporting by Neha Arora
Editing by Mayank Bhardwaj and Peter Graff)

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Aug 21 (Reuters) - JSW Steel Ltd JSTL.NS:

• UNIT DECLARED AS SUCCESSFUL BIDDER FOR A COAL BLOCK, RAJGAMAR DIPSIDE IN CHATTISGARH

Source text: ID:nBSEPgVwN

Further company coverage: JSTL.NS

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Adds details, background from paragraph 2 onwards

Aug 18 (Reuters) - JSW Steel JSTL.NS and South Korea's POSCO 005490.KS have entered a deal to explore setting up an integrated steel plant in India, the country's largest steelmaker by market capitalisation said on Monday.

The steelmakers are yet to finalise the location and its financial details, but flagged that Odisha state is among the key locations being considered for the 6 million tonne per annum (MTPA) capacity plant.

Last year, the two companies entered a deal to set up another integrated steel plant with initial capacity of 5 MTPA in Odisha. In November, Reuters reported that the firms plan to invest 650 billion rupees ($7.44 billion) in the proposed plant.

The Indian firm had said last year it would also explore a collaboration with POSCO on battery materials for electric vehicles as well as renewable energy.

($1 = 87.3762 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Manvi Pant; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala and Harikrishnan Nair)

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NEW DELHI, Aug 11 (Reuters) - The Indian alloy steel producers' association has filed an anti-dumping petition with the federal trade ministry against cheap imports from China, its senior executive told Reuters on Monday.

India, the world's second-biggest producer of crude steel, has the capacity to make around 18 million to 20 million metric tons per annum of alloy steel, which is used in the auto, defence and aerospace sectors.

"China is selling wire rods of alloy steel at very low prices, and imports have gone up considerably in the last three years, hurting the local alloy steel producers," said Anil Dhawan, director general, Alloy Steel Producers Association of India (ASPA).

Alloy steel wire rods are mainly used for automobiles and their components, Dhawan said.

Dhawan said the anti-dumping petition was filed on July 31 with the Directorate General of Trade Remedies, which falls under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

The ASPA's members include JSW Steel JSTL.NS, India's biggest steelmaker, as well as Jindal Steel JNSP.NS, Kalyani Steels KLSL.NS, and Mukand Sumi Special Steel, among others.

In April, India imposed a 12% temporary tariff on some steel imports, locally known as a safeguard duty, to curb a surge in cheap shipments primarily from China.

(Reporting by Neha Arora; Editing by Sonali Paul)

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