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Steel backbone of our economy, coal and mines strong foundation: G Kishan Reddy

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Mumbai, April 26: Steel serves as the backbone of India’s economic progress and a vital enabler of the national vision for ‘Viksit Bharat 2047’, Union Minister of Coal and Mines, G Kishan Reddy, said on Saturday.

Addressing the 6th edition of ‘Steel India 2025’ here, the minister highlighted how India is setting new global benchmarks in infrastructure development, from the Chenab Bridge in Jammu and Kashmir, the world’s highest railway bridge, to the historic Pamban Bridge in Tamil Nadu — all made possible by the growing strength of the steel sector.

Every milestone in the nation’s infrastructure journey, he remarked, is forged in steel — reflecting the momentum and aspirations of a Nation on the move.

Reddy further stated that India’s steel sector has grown at an impressive pace in recent years, positioning the country as the second-largest steel producer globally.

Citing the words of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the minister referred to steel as India’s “Sunrise Sector” — a key driver of domestic consumption, industrial expansion and self-reliance through the Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan.

Reddy expressed confidence that through close collaboration between the Centre, state governments and industry stakeholders, India will not only meet its raw material requirements domestically but also emerge as a global leader in sustainable, self-reliant steel production.

He urged all participants at the conference to contribute actively to shaping policies that will secure a greener and more resilient future for the nation’s steel ecosystem.

The Union Minister emphasised that if steel forms the backbone of India’s economy, the coal and mining sector represents the strong foundation on which it rests.

He highlighted the importance of raw material security, especially in the context of the current session on Raw Material Strategy and the Shift in Raw Material Mix.

Ensuring the availability of critical raw materials like iron ore, coking coal, limestone, and essential alloying elements such as manganese, nickel, and chromium, he noted, is both an economic necessity and a strategic imperative.

India recently achieved a landmark milestone of 1 billion tonnes of coal production and dispatch in the last financial year — a transformative step toward national energy security.

While efforts to enhance renewable energy are underway, the minister reaffirmed that coal will remain central to India’s energy and industrial landscape in the foreseeable future.

Focusing on coking coal, a critical input in steel manufacturing, Reddy pointed out that it constitutes nearly 42 per cent of steel production costs. India currently imports around 85 per cent of its coking coal needs, rendering the industry vulnerable to international price volatility and supply chain disruptions.

The minister called upon private stakeholders to actively participate in washeries, beneficiation plants, and block auctions. Pulverised Coal Injection (PCI) trials using domestic coal have already shown promise for import substitution, and greater innovation in beneficiation can further improve outcomes.

The minister also emphasised the importance of timely utilisation of greenfield mines, as reiterated by the Prime Minister.

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India world’s 2nd-largest single country contributor to global construction growth

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Mumbai, June 9: India has emerged as the second-largest single country contributor to global construction growth between 2020 and 2030, according to a new report released on Tuesday.

The report from Foundamental, a Berlin-based venture capital firm, said that India and China together account for nearly 40 per cent of global construction growth over the period.

Global capital expenditure is becoming increasingly concentrated in five countries: India, China, the United States, Germany and France, it said.

“India accounts for the second-largest share of global construction growth by volume between 2020 and 2030, at 14.1 per cent, behind only China at 26.1 per cent and ahead of the United States at 11.1 per cent,” said Shubhankar Bhattacharya, Co-Founder and General Partner at Foundamental.

Global construction spending reached $15.97 trillion in 2024 and is projected to grow to $19.86 trillion by 2028, a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.6 per cent.

Within that total, infrastructure is the fastest-growing major construction segment globally, expanding at a CAGR of 5.1 per cent between 2020 and 2025.

In India, the pace is markedly higher: the country’s infrastructure market is forecast to grow at around 8 per cent annually through the end of the decade, well above the global rate.

The report also notes that global gross fixed capital formation has grown roughly 30-fold since 1960, with that investment becoming increasingly concentrated among a handful of major economies.

“Global construction spending has already surpassed previous forecasts and is creating new opportunities across infrastructure, industrial facilities, energy systems, transportation networks and digital infrastructure,” said Bhattacharya.

The report forecasts the global data centre construction market will double by 2030 compared with 2018 levels, driven by artificial intelligence and cloud computing, making data centre infrastructure one of the fastest-growing construction segments through 2030. “Data centre construction could add between 10 per cent and 15 per cent to the global construction market by 2030,” said Bhattacharya.

The report said India is positioned to benefit from multiple long-term growth trends at once, including infrastructure expansion, industrial development, the energy transition, digital transformation and urbanisation.

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Indian equity markets trade higher as Iran-Israel tensions ease

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Mumbai, June 9: Indian equities traded higher on Tuesday in the morning trade, supported by improving sentiment after signs of a pause in hostilities between Iran and Israel.

Sensex rose as much as 0.7 per cent or over 500 points to hit an intraday high of 74,035.41 in early trade, while Nifty gained 0.6 per cent or more than 100 points to touch 23,259.45.

On the sectoral front, Nifty MidSmall Financial Services emerged as the top gainer, rising over 1 per cent, followed by Nifty Realty, which also advanced more than 1 per cent. Nifty Auto climbed 0.9 per cent. Banking stocks traded higher as well, with the PSU Bank and Private Bank indices gaining up to 0.8 per cent.

Category-wise, microcap, midcap and smallcap indices outperformed the benchmarks. Nifty Microcap 250 rose more than 1 per cent, while Nifty Midcap 50, Midcap 100 and Midcap 150 gained up to nearly 1 per cent.

Market volatility eased, with India VIX declining more than 4 per cent to around 16.

According to market experts, the decline in Brent crude prices to below $94 per barrel is positive for Indian equities. They, however, cautioned that there is no certainty that the fragile peace between Iran and Israel will hold.

A US federal judge striking down President Donald Trump’s H-1B visa fee hike is also a mild positive for Indian IT stocks, experts said.

“The bulls are too weak to stage a strong comeback, while the bears remain strong enough to press selling on rallies. The sustained selling by FIIs shows no sign of fatigue. Large-cap valuations are fair and, in segments like banking, attractive, largely due to FII selling,” analysts said.

However, elevated volatility and lingering global uncertainty are expected to keep traders cautious in the near term, they added.

Meanwhile, Iran and Israel said they had paused military strikes against each other following an appeal by U.S. President Donald Trump for an immediate de-escalation. However, Tehran warned that it would resume attacks if Israel continued targeting Hezbollah positions in Lebanon.

Crude oil prices traded lower, with international benchmark Brent crude declining about 1 per cent to $93 per barrel. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell around 1 per cent to $90 per barrel.

Asian markets traded largely in positive territory, with Japan’s Nikkei rising more than 1 per cent and South Korea’s KOSPI surging nearly 5 per cent. Other major regional indices were also trading higher.

In the US, Wall Street ended in green overnight, with the S&P 500 closing 0.3 per cent higher and the Nasdaq settling nearly 1 per cent higher.

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Sensex, Nifty trade muted in early deals amid mixed global cues

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Mumbai, May 27: Domestic equity markets traded on a muted note in early deals on Wednesday amid mixed global cues and a decline in crude oil prices.

Sensex was trading at 76,050, up 40 points or 0.05 per cent in the morning session, while Nifty rose 20 points or 0.08 per cent to 23,932. Earlier, the benchmark indices opened at 75,939.86 and 23,880.35, respectively.

Among sectoral indices, Nifty Metal emerged as the top gainer, climbing 1.59 per cent, followed by Nifty Cement, which advanced 0.83 per cent. Nifty Media, Realty and Consumer Durables also traded higher, rising up to 0.67 per cent.

On the other hand, Nifty Oil & Gas was the top loser, falling 0.66 per cent. While private banks, financial services and IT indices also traded in the red, declining up to 0.33 per cent.

Among Nifty stocks, selling pressure was visible in select heavyweight counters, with Coal India dropping over 4 per cent and ONGC slipping nearly 3 per cent. HDFC Bank, Infosys and Wipro also remained under pressure.

Meanwhile, the volatility index India VIX gained 0.68 per cent to trade around 16.

According to analysts, the near-term market tone remains cautious but stable, as recent profit booking at higher levels indicates some consolidation after the sharp recovery phase.

“Despite intermittent weakness, controlled volatility and balanced market breadth suggest that broader sentiment has not deteriorated significantly,” they added.

Meanwhile, Iran on Tuesday accused the United States of violating the ceasefire by carrying out strikes near the disputed Strait of Hormuz, while Washington maintained that the attacks were defensive in nature.

In the commodity market, crude oil prices declined, with international benchmark Brent crude falling 1.73 per cent to $97.85 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude dropped over 2 per cent to $91.87 per barrel.

In Asia, markets traded mixed. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng declined nearly 1 per cent, while Japan’s Nikkei and South Korea’s KOSPI rose up to almost 5 per cent.

Overnight in the US, Wall Street ended higher, with the S&P 500 gaining 0.61 per cent and the Nasdaq closing 1.19 per cent higher.

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