GST numbers for June gives a good indication on the state of the economy. The auto industry is still sluggish in terms of production but sales have improved. We expect the economy to pick up by October. The demand for domestic steel is currently at 50% of the total capacity and we expect steel demand to reach previous levels of 110 million tonnes in the next few months. Indian steel companies don't have good quality coal, unfortunately. I believe in Free Trade; import & export should be free.
As far as China is concerned, we must take steps to post the border skirmish. We can no longer rely on Chinese supplies to make our own medicines. The Indian furniture industry is non-existent as the Chinese have killed it and not just in weak sectors, but overall, India's reliance on China should become nil as soon as possible. Therefore, we have been putting pressure on equipment manufacturers to make in India. All large OEMs have set up shop in India but they face competition from cheaper Chinese OEMs. We are against importing manufactured products and don't believe the availability of land is a problem, says Sajjan Jindal, JSW Group.
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