India Antitrust Probe Alleges Top Steelmakers Coordinated Prices and Output

The companies named in the report are Tata Steel, JSW Steel, and state-run Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) and Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL). The Competition Commission of India (CCI) concluded that the firms worked together between 2018 and 2023 to manage supply and align price increases, per Reuters.

The case is part of the most prominent antitrust action ever taken against India’s steel industry. Earlier this month, Reuters reported that the CCI had found 28 companies guilty of colluding on steel prices, exposing them to potentially large financial penalties. The latest findings focus on the four largest producers, which together control an estimated 44.4% of the domestic steel market, according to consultancy BigMint.

The investigation, drafted in April 2025, reviewed dozens of WhatsApp messages obtained during industry raids in 2022. These included conversations from groups with names such as “Friends of Steel,” “Tycoons,” and “Steel Live Market.” Investigators also examined pricing data, sales trends, and production levels, according to Reuters.

The report states that there was “enough circumstantial evidence … of concerted efforts by SAIL, RINL, JSW and Tata Steel.” It added that the firms “were influencing the market with the sensitive price information in advance,” per Reuters.

Although the four companies’ executives were not found to have directly posted messages in the seized chats, investigators said they compared the shared information with real pricing decisions and found that the changes moved in step, according to Reuters.

Some of the messages quoted in the report referenced the pricing intentions of major producers. One post in 2022 in a group called “TMT TYCOONS” 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 stated: “All main producers like jsw, tata … and sail planning to increase TMT price by 1500 to 2000 pmt from 1st Nov.”

Related: India Antitrust Watchdog Finds Major Steelmakers Guilty of Price Collusion

The probe also found evidence of coordinated output cuts. For the 2020–21 financial year, production by the four companies was reduced by between 16% and 22%, which the commission described as a “controlled reduction in production,” according to Reuters.

Internal presentations from RINL further supported the allegations. One document submitted to a government committee showed that for several years the company used competitors’ market prices to set its own rates. Another presentation in 2020 noted that there were “production cuts by manufacturers,” which the commission said amounted to “clear-cut corroboration” of the alleged coordination, per Reuters.

India is the world’s second-largest crude steel producer, and demand has surged in recent years due to rising infrastructure investment. The commission has also named senior executives as responsible for the conduct, including JSW’s billionaire managing director Sajjan Jindal and Tata Steel CEO T.V. Narendran, according to Reuters.

Tata Steel said in a statement to Reuters that it “categorically denies any wrongdoing” and sets prices independently based on market conditions. The company said it would submit a detailed response to the commission. JSW, SAIL and RINL did not respond to Reuters’ requests for comment, though their executives denied wrongdoing during the investigation, the report said.

The CCI does not make cartel case details public under its rules and declined to comment. Senior officials are now reviewing the findings and have the authority to impose fines or overturn the investigation’s conclusions, according to Reuters.

Source: Reuters