Government support must for competitive steel industry

In a deregulated economy, the commodities prices are based on interplay of demand and supply forces. In the present market structure indicating a veiled similarity of actions by the major players prompted by the market activities, the need for policy intervention by the government remains strong. Irrespective of the economic stages the country is passing through, public investment, popularly termed as stimulus measures have been and continue to be announced by the respective governments. In some of the major steel producing countries, namely, China, USA, Japan, South Korea, Russia, Germany, Turkey, Vietnam, the state intervention is not only confined to providing budgetary support to the infrastructure binge being undertaken by these countries, these also include adopting suitable trade measures against surge in imports from countries abroad and announcement of other policy measures aimed to promote the domestic manufacturing capabilities. These trends have become inseparable engines of growth perspective of all the countries characterised by dominant share of manufacturing and industry. The positive encouragements to the industry sector are guided by concern of employment and income growth, improvement in logistic chain culminating in balanced regional growth, the critical factor in eliminating income disparity.