Latest Sectors News
Ashok Kumar Panda is the new Chairman and Managing Director of SAIL. He previously served as Director (Finance) and Director (Commercial). Panda aims to expand SAIL's capacity to 35 million tonnes per annum. He emphasizes strengthening raw material security and market reach. His focus will be on value-added products and sustained value creation for the company. View More
Ashok Kumar Panda has taken over as Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Steel Authority of India Limited ( SAIL ). A company statement said he served as Director (Finance) of the Company and also held the additional charge of Director (Commercial) for about nine months prior to his elevation. “SAIL is on track for its next phase of capacity expansion to 35 million tonnes per annum,” he said, adding strengthening raw material security through enhanced domestic mining and exploration of overseas assets will be critical to support growth ambitions. Also Read: SAIL crosses 20 million tonnes sales in fiscal 2026 Panda has three decades experience in different plants and units of SAIL. Panda joined the public sector undertaking as a Management Trainee (Technical) in 1992 after a Bachelor’s in Electrical Engineering. He holds a specialisation in Finance from XIM, Bhubaneshwar, and later acquired Ph.D. in Business Finance. “We are committed to expanding our market reach with a sharper focus on value-added products , strengthening our brand connect and ensuring sustained value creation,” he said. Live Events Panda is credited with reduction of borrowings by Rs 20,000 crore through deleveraging efforts. The Cost Reduction initiatives include identification of shop-wise technical levers and implementing action plans to resolve inefficiencies towards improving bottom line. Also Read: India's state-run SAIL wins court block on steel antitrust investigation He also played a key role in determining the fair price of rails supplied to Indian Railways, SAIL said, noting he was instrumental in revising the Fixed Asset Sales Accounting Policy in the public sector undertaking which contributed towards improvement in the bottom line. .Pbanner{display:flex;justify-content:space-between;align-items:center;background-color:#ec1c40;margin-top:20px;padding:5px 10px;border-radius:4px;color:#fff;line-height:10px;} .Pbannertext{display:flex;align-items:center;font-size:16px;font-weight:600;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannertext img{height:20px;margin:0 6px} .Pbannerbutton a{display:flex;align-items:center;background-color:#fff;color:#ec1c40;text-decoration:none;font-weight:600;padding:4px 8px;border-radius:6px;font-size:15px;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannerbutton img{height:20px;margin-right:6px} .Pbannerbutton a:hover{background-color:#f7f7f7} Add as a Reliable and Trusted News Source Add Now! (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel) (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel)
Amid rising geopolitical tensions around the Strait of Hormuz and growing global competition for critical minerals, Vedanta Group has said India needs to accelerate domestic exploration and operationalise natural resource assets faster to reduce import dependence and strengthen long-term resource security. View More
New Delhi: Amid rising geopolitical tensions around the Strait of Hormuz and growing global competition for critical minerals, Vedanta Group has said India needs to accelerate domestic exploration and operationalise natural resource assets faster to reduce import dependence and strengthen long-term resource security. In its media brief, the metals-to-oil conglomerate said vulnerabilities in global energy and mineral supply chains are "structural, not cyclical", as India remains heavily dependent on imports for crude oil and several key resources. Also Read: Texmaco bags Rs 187cr order from Kochi Metro, Vedanta "The Strait of Hormuz has once again brought into focus a structural reality - how concentrated and fragile global energy supply chains remain," the Vedanta media brief said. "With nearly 88% of its crude oil imported and a significant share routed through vulnerable corridors, even short-lived disruptions can cascade into price volatility, supply uncertainty, and macroeconomic pressure." The company said similar concentration risks are now emerging in critical minerals, which are essential for electrification, clean energy and advanced manufacturing. Live Events "What makes this moment more consequential is that the same pattern is now emerging beyond oil. Critical minerals, essential for electrification, clean energy, and advanced manufacturing, are also concentrated across a handful of geographies," the document stated. Also Read: Five companies get regulator's approval for public issues The media brief comes at a time when global markets remain sensitive to developments in West Asia, particularly around the Strait of Hormuz, a key global oil transit route. Vedanta said India's challenge was not resource scarcity alone, but the pace at which exploration and production capacities are being developed. "The country holds meaningful untapped potential across hydrocarbons and minerals. The gap lies in the speed of exploration, scale of investment, and ability to convert resources into production," the company said in the document. The company also called for faster operationalisation of mining assets and policy reforms to improve execution in the natural resources sector. "At a time when 50% of India's import bill is linked to natural resources, it is critical to operationalise assets faster," Vedanta Chairman Anil Agarwal said in the media brief. He further said this would require "faster, technology-enabled land acquisition with direct benefit transfer", "time-bound approvals with trust-based, self-certification frameworks", and "commercially viable premiums to ensure sustainability of operations." According to the Vedanta, around 85 per cent of auctioned mining blocks in India remain non-operational, highlighting what it described as a significant execution gap. The group's comments come shortly after Vedanta completed its demerger into five sector-focused entities effective May 1, covering aluminium, power, oil & gas, iron & steel, and Vedanta Ltd, which will house zinc, copper and critical minerals businesses. .Pbanner{display:flex;justify-content:space-between;align-items:center;background-color:#ec1c40;margin-top:20px;padding:5px 10px;border-radius:4px;color:#fff;line-height:10px;} .Pbannertext{display:flex;align-items:center;font-size:16px;font-weight:600;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannertext img{height:20px;margin:0 6px} .Pbannerbutton a{display:flex;align-items:center;background-color:#fff;color:#ec1c40;text-decoration:none;font-weight:600;padding:4px 8px;border-radius:6px;font-size:15px;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannerbutton img{height:20px;margin-right:6px} .Pbannerbutton a:hover{background-color:#f7f7f7} Add as a Reliable and Trusted News Source Add Now! (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel) (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel)
Greg Abel is getting decent, if not spectacular, reviews for leading his first annual shareholders meeting as CEO. View More
In this articleBRK.B.SPX8002.T-JP8053.T-JPBRK.BFollow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT (This is the Warren Buffett Watch newsletter, news and analysis on all things Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway. You can sign up here to receive it every Friday evening in your inbox.) Abel knows Berkshire cold, but some miss the Buffett magic He's no Warren Buffett, and thankfully, he's not trying to be Warren Buffett.But Greg Abel is getting decent, if not spectacular, reviews for leading his first annual shareholders meeting as CEO.He's not the draw that Buffett and Munger have been over the years, with the CHI Health Center arena in Omaha a bit more than half full, although that turnout is still spectacular compared to the typical corporate annual meeting.Abel's detailed knowledge about Berkshire's operating businesses won praise, but the unexplained absence of substantial buybacks and a lack of clarity on the future of the equity portfolio and Berkshire's big cash pile are coming up as negatives. Greg Abel, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, speaks during the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholders Meeting in Omaha, NE on May 2, 2026. Check Capital Management Steve Check listed the positives for CNBC.com's Yun Li: "Very solid. No misspoke words. Thorough answers. Nice guy, but we sure don't have the laughs that we had with Warren and Charlie."Barron's Berkshire watcher, Andrew Bary, gave Abel a "B-plus" but thinks he "needs improvement on his delivery â too many rambling answers â and on capital allocation messaging."He also warns Abel's "solid performance" could be overshadowed by Berkshire's "trivial" stock repurchases of just $234 million in the first quarter, despite its March announcement that buybacks had "resumed."In a video interview with Yahoo Finance, CFRA Research analyst Cathy Seifer called Abel's performance "okay.""Greg obviously has big shoes to fill and he's a very capable business leader," but she thinks Berkshire needs to do a better job "articulating to investors what the plan is to manage the investment portfolios."She's also disappointed at the low level of buybacks. "If Berkshire isn't buying back their stock, why should you?" watch nowVIDEO2:1502:15Surprised investors didn't hear about more buybacks from Berkshire, says Glenview Trust's Bill StoneThe Exchange University of Maryland finance professor David Kass told Fortune Abel "demonstrated his knowledge of and passion for" Berkshire's businesses and investments."He is more serious in demeanor, but like Warren he is very pleasant. Since there will be less humor at future Berkshire meetings, they will be less entertaining. But Greg will be able to respond well to all shareholder questions and discuss the past performance and outlook for all of Berkshire's businesses."Shareholder Tilman Versch called it "definitely the meeting with the deepest insights into Berkshire's businesses in the last decade." Greg Abel, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, meets with shareholders at the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholders Meeting in Omaha, NE on May 1, 2026.Sarah Min | CNBC For some shareholders, however, those business insights are not why they came to Omaha.Reuters quoted Xiao Zhang as saying, "I was a little bit disappointed.""In previous years, Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger sat on the stage, sharing their investing experiences and also life experiences and philosophies. This year, I didn't hear something like that."Sophia Deng told the wire service, "Most people are here for investing knowledge and life philosophies. It was one of the reasons I was drawn to Berkshire."With Greg Abel, the emphasis was very, very different. It (became) more of an operational excellence conference, and it's not what I'm â interested in as much." Zoom In IconArrows pointing outwards Investors gave Abel and Berkshire's first quarter financials, released just before Saturday's meeting, a positive, if muted, review.The A shares gained 1% on the week. The B shares were also positive, but up just 0.6%.The S&P, however, continued to outperform both with a 2.3% gain. WSJ: Gen Re head to eventually succeed Jain as insurance chief Charlie Shamieh, the chairman of reinsurer Gen Re since 2018, has been chosen by Berkshire Hathaway to run all of its insurance operations when Ajit Jain decides to retire, according to The Wall Street Journal, which cites "people familiar with the matter."The Journal says Jain, who is 74, hasn't indicated when he might step down and is "expected to remain in the role for the foreseeable future."Berkshire acquired Gen Re in 1998 for $21.7 billion in stock. At the 2011 annual meeting, Buffett said hiring Jain in 1982 was his "best deal" and "I can't think of any decision he's ever made that I think I could have made better." Retiring CFO will be flying for free on NetJets As Berkshire's long serving CFO, Marc D. Hamburg kept a low profile.After his scheduled retirement on June 1, he will be flying high on a Berkshire subsidiary.In a filing, the company says that "in recognition of Mr. Hamburg's many decades of service," he, or his surviving spouse, will be provided with "up to 30 flight hours per year on a mid-sized NetJets aircraft" until 2037.The flights, along with money to cover taxes resulting from the benefit, will cost around $490 thousand a year, according to the company. The NetJets display at the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholders Meeting in Omaha, Nebraska on May 2, 2025.David A. Grogen | CNBC The filing also says the new CFO, Charles Chang, will get an $8 million annual cash salary.Hamburg's total compensation last year was $4.3 million, according to the 2026 meeting proxy statement. Berkshire is forced to trim stake even as DaVita soars Berkshire sold almost $183 million of DaVita shares for just under $150 each on May 1, according to an SEC filing this week.It was required to cut its stake to 45% under a 2024 agreement with DaVita. This is the sixth straight quarter Berkshire has had to sell due to DaVita buybacks that have reduced its outstanding shares, raising Berkshire's percentage ownership. Zoom In IconArrows pointing outwards Like last quarter, Berkshire would almost certainly have preferred to keep its shares.DVA rallied by 31% this week to close at $198.65 after topping Wall Street's expectations for its first quarter earnings and raising its profit forecast for the year due to continued strong demand for dialysis.It's up more than 38% over the past year. Two Japan stakes rise above 10% Two more of Berkshire's Japanese "trading house" holdings have topped 10% as of the beginning of this month.In filings this week, Marubeni said Berkshire's stake has increased from 9.3% to 10.1% and Sumitomo reported Berkshire owns almost 10.1% of its shares, up from 9.3%. Zoom In IconArrows pointing outwards BUFFETT & BERKSHIRE AROUND THE INTERNET Some links may require a subscription:Bloomberg Opinion: Warren Buffett Can't Bequeath Abel Patient InvestorsForbes: Replacing Warren Buffett: Four Things Greg Abel Got Right In His First 10 MinutesKMTV (Omaha): Berkshire 5K brought together shareholders, youth runners and environmental activistsKETV (Omaha): NFM picnic during Berkshire Weekend with food, music and local givebackBusiness Insider on AOL: 4 of Warren Buffett's Berkshire CEOs told us how they're harnessing AI in their businessesCNBC The Bottom Line: Berkshire-owned distribution giant to deploy driverless big rigs across U.S. Sun BeltThe Times (London): Life after Warren Buffett at 'Woodstock for capitalists'Yahoo Finance video: 'It's been very consistent': Brooks Running CEO on working with Greg AbelCNBC video: A lot more equity building opportunities in our brands, says Kraft Heinz CEO Barron's on MSN: Coke Keeps Beating Pepsi. And Warren Buffett's Still a Fan. HIGHLIGHTS FROM CNBC'S BUFFETT ARCHIVE Warren Buffett's Mid-Meeting Live Interview (2026) As the meeting's lunch break was ending, Warren Buffett sat down with CNBC's Becky Quick for a live interview streamed on CNBC.com and shown on screens for shareholders in the arena.They discuss why Buffett doesn't think it is a great time for Berkshire to make major investments, among other topics.(The full morning and afternoon sessions, as well as clips from the 2026 meeting, are now available in CNBC's Warren Buffett Archive.) watch nowVIDEO25:2525:25Warren Buffett's Mid-Meeting Live Interview2026 Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting BECKY QUICK: We are sitting down right now with Warren Buffett, the chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, who, for the first time in 60 years, has been watching all of this from the audience instead of being onstage.And last year at this time, Warren, you surprised everyone with the announcement that you were stepping down as CEO.Fast forward a year and here we are. What do you think?WARREN BUFFETT: Well, I think it's all working. It's all working.It isn't our ideal surrounding area â or environment, I should say â in terms of deploying cash for Berkshire.But in terms of how â we got the right management, we got the right arrangement.And, you know, we can pick our spots and nobody can tell us what to do exactly. And so sometimes we're doing nothing. But (laughs) other times we get quite active, I mean âBECKY QUICK: You know, Ajit spent some time on the stage today talking about how one of his keys is to do nothing âWARREN BUFFETT: Absolutely.BECKY QUICK: â when it comes to insurance, when it comes to writing insurance, which is the same thing that you have always talked about with whether to invest or not.WARREN BUFFETT: Yeah. The world is full of people that are offering you things to do, and then the question is to find one that you know makes sense.And there may be twenty out there that make sense that you don't understand and you just leave them alone.BECKY QUICK: You said that the world, or the surrounding environment, is not ideal. And I guess that points to the idea that there's almost $400 billion dollars in cash on hand. Although Greg took some pains to show it's really more like $380 billion in cash on hand.WARREN BUFFETT: (Laughs) Well, yeah.BECKY QUICK: But there's a lot of cash on hand, and you're still active in managing the portfolio, too, and looking at stocks.You're looking around and you don't see a lot that you want to invest in.WARREN BUFFETT: No. Well, then we don't do anything, yeah.I mean we've been in the â of the 60 years I've been in the business, you know, probably five have been really juicy, you know â (Laughs)And I think it was Tom Watson Sr. of IBM that said â they asked him the reason why IBM had been so successful or something like that.And he said, "I'm smart in spots and I stay around those spots." And that's the whole thing.And IBM was in three different businesses, including time clocks and a couple â and two of the three turned out to be no good, but â (Laughs)So they just focused on the one.BECKY QUICK: What is it when you look around? It's just prices are too high at this point? I would imagine there are âWARREN BUFFETT: Yeah.BECKY QUICK: â Greg said this from the stage, too âWARREN BUFFETT: Yeah.BECKY QUICK: There are businesses that you like âWARREN BUFFETT: Well âBECKY QUICK: â just not at these prices.WARREN BUFFETT: And I would say I understand fewer of the businesses, as a percentage of the whole, than I did ten years ago.I have not learned new industries for some years, you know. And â so I don't kid myself on that. I'm not going to learn them.I'm not going to have an edge on, you know, a whole bunch of younger people that have actually grown up with it, and used the product, seen things.But â well â as I've mentioned, you know, you don't have to understand too many if they're like Apple. (Laughs)BECKY QUICK: But looking around, let's just get some macro thoughts on this, because I don't know that this is something that Greg is going to comment on, per se.Just looking at the macro stock market environment, what does this feel like to you? Does it feel expensive? Does it feel like there are opportunities in some places âWARREN BUFFETT: Well, it feels like â you know, I've compared the markets to a church with a casino attached. And people can move between the church and casino.And I would say there are more people in the church and more people in the casino. But the casino has gotten very attractive to people, you know.If you're buying one-day options, or selling them, I mean, that is â that's not investing, it's not speculating, it's gambling, you know, just totally.There's nobody that can explain why they're buying an option for one day, unless they have â maybe the fellow that, you know, made the four hundred-and-some thousand dollars from knowing when we were going into Venezuela can do it. But, I mean âAnd the quantity of those things is just incredible.So we've never had people in a more gambling mood than now, but that doesn't mean that investing is terrible. It does mean that prices for an awful lot of things will look very silly. I mean, they â you know, they âThey had a squeeze in Avis, of all things. Well, Avis has been around for 50 years, but just this past week âAnd we have lots more regulation and everything now. But people spend their time figuring out how they get around the rules rather than following the rules, and that's just a challenge.BECKY QUICK: The type of investor you are though is â you laid it out yourself â in the 60 years you've been doing this in the business, you've had maybe five juicy years. I guess that means you're always looking for the next juicy year.What do you think it would take to make a juicy year, or a juicy opportunity, for you?WARREN BUFFETT: It's a phone call in many â in some cases, you know âWe bought a business last year. It wasn't big enough to be meaningful, but we got a letter.BECKY QUICK: Bell Labs [Laboratories]?WARREN BUFFETT: Yeah, Bell Labs.And, you know â and sometimes there's more zeroes attached to them than others. (Laughs)And we're big enough to handle anything, and we can make decisions faster than anybody, and our word is good.There's an awful lot of people that they're â when they â they're in the business of reselling something or â you know, it's â and there's â  And it's a lot better âIf you're a good salesperson, there's no reason to be selling vacuum cleaners, or â you know.Might as well sell stock, you'll make way more money. (Laughs)It's where the money is. And there's more money around than ever, and it âBECKY QUICK: But the best opportunities have probably come when the macro environment leads to panic âWARREN BUFFETT: That's the most likely.Well, the most likely time to buy things is when nobody else will answer their phones. You know, everybody else talks about their wonderful trading departments and everything. Just try them out sometime when markets are collapsing. They don't answer the phones.BECKY QUICK: Right, right.WARREN BUFFETT: And if they do, the bids are subject, and the offers are subject, and the spread is wide, and they'll use the information they get from you about what you want to do to go out and kill you some other way. I mean âIt's really like going to a slaughterhouse, I mean, you know. You don't feel like eating hot dogs for a while. (Laughter)BECKY QUICK: I guess what I'm trying to get at is, do you see the circumstances building up anywhere that could lead to a time like that again, any sort of panic in the market?WARREN BUFFETT: Sure.BECKY QUICK: Where do you see them?WARREN BUFFETT: Well, if you saw them, they wouldn't happen.BECKY QUICK: OK.WARREN BUFFETT: I mean, you've got all kind âYou don't worry about what people are talking about can happen.It's something that comes out of the blue. But then something will come out of the blue.BECKY QUICK: Yeah.WARREN BUFFETT: I mean â (laughs) â a nuclear bomb could come out of the blue.BECKY QUICK: Well, let's knock on wood on that. (Laughter)WARREN BUFFETT: Well, it doesn't do any good to knock on wood. That's â (laughter) â that's the point.BECKY QUICK: Yeah.WARREN BUFFETT: You know, it was the archduke getting shot, you know, in 1914, or something like that, for World War I.It â just take everything in life. If it â if it's something people are talking about and thinking about, it's not going to happen.BECKY QUICK: Yeah.WARREN BUFFETT: But there are things that can happen out of the blue.And actually, that's particularly true to use that phraseology now, because the things that can come out of the sky, you know âWe don't know what can happen tomorrow. I don't like to talk that way â (laughs) â to people, whether it's you or anybody else, I mean, because â you know âBecause whether it does you a lot of good to worry about that â I don't think it does do any good to worry about it.I think it's good to be cognizant of it, but the worrying about it is terrible. And I don't like to â I don't like to even cause that belief with people. I don't like to âBECKY QUICK: Yeah.WARREN BUFFETT: â tell them the end is coming, the end is coming â (laughs) â or something like that.BECKY QUICK: A friend told me yesterday, he's recently started using the phrase, "I don't fret, I don't worry." And it's probably a good way to go about life.But let's talk about some of the issues that are out there right now.Inflation is up. That's an issue. So âWARREN BUFFETT: Well, and--BECKY QUICK: â how does Berkshire â how does Berkshire handle that with its businesses?WARREN BUFFETT: Well, we can't handle runaway inflation, except not to be there in the way of it.And if you look at the number of countries that have had runaway inflation since World War II â you know, in my lifetime â it's very large, you know.And once you create that, it becomes a different world.And, you know, Germany obviously experienced it after World War I.But there are dozens and dozens of countries that have experienced it. And, of course, you have countries that have gone bankrupt, like, six or seven times, I mean â (laughs) âIt's just amazing what people do in financial markets.BECKY QUICK: What about the inflation that we're dealing with right now, which is, you know, not excessive, it's north of 3% at this point, but we're not even back at the levels we were during COVID âWARREN BUFFETT: Oh no.BECKY QUICK: â when we were looking at 8% to 9%.So what about just higher energy prices, how that works through the line, and how you handle it?WARREN BUFFETT: Well, it came close before [1979-1987 Fed Chair Paul] Volcker. I mean, it was just â it was cash is trash, you know.And people were losing faith in the currency, and they felt they could borrow at 12% to earn 6% on farming or something like that. And they â they had huge farms in this state, Nebraska, collapsed because they bought beyond the earning power, they paid interest rates beyond the earning power, just because they felt that the dollar was going to disappear and the land wouldn't disappear.And it's â it's tragic for many people.And if you're the best doctor in town or the best lawyer in town, you'll always make money under any situation â the best â the best TV personality, I mean â (Laughs) â it's â it's âBut â what â not having faith in the money does to a country, it turns it into something else.BECKY QUICK: Yeah.WARREN BUFFETT: And I â you know â I've always hoped that, you know, the U.S. never does it.But we are not immune from it happening.We have a lot of control over whether rates may go up a half a point or down a half a point, but we may have less control over whether they go up 50 points. (Laughs)BECKY QUICK: You've long been a supporter of [outgoing Fed Chair] Jay Powell's.WARREN BUFFETT: Exactly.BECKY QUICK: He had his last FOMC meeting as chairman just this last week.He did say that he's going to be sticking around, staying on the Fed, staying in that position for the foreseeable future, in part because of the threats that he's faced.WARREN BUFFETT: I'll feel better when he's there than when he's not. I mean â it â you know âI just felt better when Volcker was there.But you â economists aren't the best at this sort of thing. Read any old economics book from 1950 or 1970.Paul Samuelson, who was a terrific guy and smart as hell, he had the standard textbook for 25 years.And if you looked up, you know, zero interest rates in year after year after year â it was a 900-page book â and there wasn't an entry for it, you know âIt was the most important economic development, I mean, in terms of the impact of what happened, everything during the lifetime of the students reading it.But it's what you don't think of that does all the damage.BECKY QUICK: Yeah.Let's talk a little bit about CEOs in some of the Berkshire holdings. You mentioned Apple's Tim Cook and just the phenomenal job you think he's done.WARREN BUFFETT: Incredible.BECKY QUICK: He's not the only one of your major holding CEOs who stepped down.James Quincey recently stepped down from Coca-Cola, too âWARREN BUFFETT: Yeah.BECKY QUICK: And we just spoke with Vicki Hollub, who announced that she is retiring and stepping down from that position at Occidental [Petroleum].Part of what Greg's talked about is how stable that portfolio is, and these holdings or companies that he knows and managers that he knows.There's going to be some new managers in some of those major holdings coming in. Is that a problem?WARREN BUFFETT: Well, it was certainly a problem with Coca-Cola there for â (laughs) â a good many years when I was around the company. I mean, sure, it's âAnd you have the most problems with â with a really good company, because it'll â it'll continue.I mean, if you're selling some product that people are buying every day, you can make the wrong decision for a long time.But that's one of the problems with investing.[Apple CEO] Tim Cook, I felt, was very, very good from the start.And our â most of our managers are very good at the smaller problems. They can't anticipate the overwhelming problems. That's my job, or now Greg's job.BECKY QUICK: Do you feel good about those holdings still? Have you met any of the new managers â of those businesses?WARREN BUFFETT: I haven't met the old managers. (Laughter)BECKY QUICK: Of the new businesses â of the new CEOs that are coming in â Tim Cook's replacement [John Ternus] âWARREN BUFFETT: Well I, you know âBECKY QUICK: â Henrique [Braun] at Coca-Cola âWARREN BUFFETT : I certainly met the people at Bell Labs that we did.And obviously, I've met Dick. We made the deal.So, I enjoy meeting the people.But you can make mistakes with people. I mean, look at the divorce rate. (Laughter)That's more important than whether you've got the right CEO or anything else.And now you've got years of trial.I mean, back when I was young, I mean, you had to make the decision, you know. Or you didn't have to make the decision, but a good many people made the decision when they were 20 or 21. Now âBECKY QUICK: To get married.WARREN BUFFETT: Yeah, they got married.Now they spend five years, they still make the same mistakes. (Laughter)BECKY QUICK: So you think we're getting worse at our judgment in some of these things âWARREN BUFFETT: Well, I don't know. It may be that people behaved differently before the marriage than after, who knows exactly.I would say that almost everybody feels either their marriage is better or worse than they anticipated a month after they were married. (Laughter)But I don't know which. (Laughs)BECKY QUICK: Warren, let's talk a little bit about deepfakes, because the deepfake Warren that popped up early in this session was pretty good.They had somebody standing up, you know â and Greg was joking about it, but, you know â the first question went to a guy from Warren up in the rafters who lives in Omaha.You've been concerned about some of these AI deepfakes and what that means for the world.WARREN BUFFETT: Yeah, I would be concerned if everybody was âWell, actually the worst thing would be to have a â a really good imitator of any president that came along. I mean, just imagine.Well, we had that famous thing before, way back in New Jersey where they had the Martians coming and everything like that âBECKY QUICK: Oh, War of the Worlds with Orson Welles.WARREN BUFFETT: But what you can do âWell, if you convince people to lend you money when you shouldn't be borrowing it â I mean â it's â it's scary.And it's particularly scary when you have nine countries or so with the nuclear weapons and people working on it, it's something even more âWe haven't dealt with this. We don't know what's going to happen.BECKY QUICK: Yeah.Let's circle back to Berkshire and the Berkshire of today.I think I was speaking with you yesterday, or the day before, and we were talking a little bit about Greg Abel and what a nice guy he is. And you said âWARREN BUFFETT: He is a terrific guy.BECKY QUICK: You said something interesting to me, though, about how you picked him, and it wasn't because he was a nice guy. (Laughter)Why did you pick him?WARREN BUFFETT: Well, he's very, very, very smart about businesses.Incidentally, he's getting his Canadian â I mean, he's getting his American citizenship very soon, and he was going over it with me, all the things he had to learn about.And I've actually spent a little time in the past with groups of individuals â of course, my wife did it, too â became an American citizenship â an American citizen.And the things they have to learn about the Constitution and all these â and they're usually so proud when they become American citizens.And I think I â I think I detect in Greg â I mean, you know â that as successful as he's been in everything else, I mean âHe is â it means something to him to become an American citizen.And, you know, he said â his young son, you know, and â his son knows more about some of the answers to the questions, you know, that they may get asked or something â (laughs) â about the company âIt's â it's really interesting. And where else does that happen in the world? I mean, what people â you know âAmerica is special. And it's a miracle what America's accomplished. It's just an absolute miracle.And yet, the miracle and the division of the output and everything is about as inequitable as you can come up with, while at the same time, it's got these great attractions.There is some secret sauce. I've never been able to define it precisely. But when you run a country for 200 and some years and people want to come here every year, I mean, there's â there's something about it.And when Greg Abel is very â you know, is looking forward to becoming an American citizen, that means something to him.And you can't buy that anyplace â (laughs) â or package it, you know?It won't work for a Madison Avenue approach, you know, be an American or something like that.But that â that feeling just goes â in my 95 years, I've â I've seen it, you know, time after time.So, I felt â I felt good when I  â Greg just volunteered that in the last day or two to me, that he was â he's up there for his final exams there pretty soon â (laughs) â on becoming a citizen.BECKY QUICK: I didn't realize he wasn't a dual citizen already. I knew he was Canadian, but I thought he had dual citizenship âWARREN BUFFETT: He doesn't have a full â whatever the complete citizenship requirement is.And you can say, why does he care? He's gotten along fine without it here and everything. He still wants to be a citizen.BECKY QUICK: Yeah.Two hundred and fifty years â we're celebrating our 250th anniversary.You pointed out that you've been around for 95 of them.Do you think we have the special sauce that that will continue in this country? Or what do we need to do to preserve that and make sure that it does continue?WARREN BUFFETT: Yeah, we've got a special sauce â there â a secret sauce.It's actually a good secret, that I don't know what exactly â (laughs) â it is.But I do know this, that anybody that has a choice would choose to be born in America.I mean, you know, you can pick some very small, little, country, they're very happy that they're âBut, is this â is there any other country that everybody, for a couple hundred years, has wanted to emigrate to? I mean, it âAnd it attracted some terrible people, you know, too.But â but it worked. And they had the mafias and the different groups â not just the Italian Mafia, but â I mean â  It wasn't that they were all â we had some system for picking out the wonderful people from some other countries.But â it has â and it's worked, but it's worked â the extremes to which it works don't seem to belong to that kind of a society.I mean, if you were drawing up dreams for the ideal society, and you would have this kind of GDP per capita and everything, you wouldn't design â you wouldn't design the â you wouldn't design the inheritance laws. You wouldn't â I mean, you'd just do all kinds of things differently.But somehow it's worked.But that doesn't mean that we can't do better â I mean â at all.BECKY QUICK: You know, Warren, there are thousands of people, shareholders and partners of yours, for decades in some cases, who are sitting out in this arena right now.And I just wonder if there's a message you'd like to give to them. Those who have been following you for years and who have been partners of yours for years.WARREN BUFFETT: The number one rule I'd give them is just â I'd give them the Golden Rule. (Laughs)Do unto others as you âI'm not a religious guy, but, I mean, nobody said it any better in a couple thousand years than that. Which may be why it's lasted to a certain degree, too, I mean â you know âMore people are reading a two thousand-year-old book about how to behave than anything that anybody's coming up with lately.You know, it's got a lot of â particularly the Old Testament's â got different kinds of stories to some extent.But, if the whole world lived by the Golden Rule, it would be such a more wonderful society.BECKY QUICK: Do unto others as you'd have them do unto you.WARREN BUFFETT: Yeah. And that's true for everything, from parenthood to being a boss to being all of â I mean, just everything in life.And it doesn't cost you anything. In fact, it's reflected in better behavior toward you. So it means the very selfish sort of thing in one sense.But I've never seen anybody that's unhappy that behaves that way. And I've seen a lot of people in a lot of different kinds of situations.BECKY QUICK: Warren, I want to thank you for taking this time to sit down with us today.Warren Buffett, the chairman of Berkshire Hathaway. BERKSHIRE STOCK WATCH Four weeks Zoom In IconArrows pointing outwards Twelve months Zoom In IconArrows pointing outwards BRK.A stock price: $717,386.81BRK.B stock price: $475.94BRK.B P/E (TTM): 14.17Berkshire market capitalization: $1,028,317,207,249Berkshire Cash as of March 31: $397.4 billion (Up 6.5% from Dec. 31)Excluding Rail Cash and Subtracting T-Bills Payable: $380.2 billion (Up 3.0% from Dec. 31)Berkshire repurchased $234 million of its shares in Q1 2026.(All figures are as of the date of publication, unless otherwise indicated) BERKSHIRE'S TOP EQUITY HOLDINGS - May 8, 2026 Zoom In IconArrows pointing outwards Berkshire's top holdings of disclosed publicly traded stocks in the U.S. and Japan, by market value, based on the latest closing prices.Holdings are as of December 31, 2025, as reported in Berkshire Hathaway's 13F filing on February 17, 2026, except for:Mitsubishi, which is as of August 28, 2025Mitsui, which is as of September 30, 2025The full list of holdings and current market values is available from CNBC.com's Berkshire Hathaway Portfolio Tracker. QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS Please send any questions or comments about the newsletter to me at alex.crippen@nbcuni.com. (Sorry, but we don't forward questions or comments to Buffett himself.)If you aren't already subscribed to this newsletter, you can sign up here.Also, Buffett's annual letters to shareholders are highly recommended reading. There are collected here on Berkshire's website.-- Alex Crippen, Editor, Warren Buffett Watch Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.
India's mining sector is poised for significant growth. A new report suggests "Mining 5.0" can boost the economy by USD 500 billion and create 25 million jobs by 2047. This transformation relies on artificial intelligence, integrated digital systems, and sustainable practices. The industry is shifting towards value-driven, technology-enabled operations. View More
New Delhi: India's mining sector has the potential to contribute an additional USD 500 billion to the economy and create up to 25 million incremental jobs by 2047, but achieving this will require a major shift towards " Mining 5.0 " driven by artificial intelligence, integrated digital systems and sustainable operations, according to a Deloitte-ICC report . The report titled "Mining 5.0 - Emerging Mining Technologies by 2030" said India's mining industry is entering a "structural transition" as the country's demand for minerals rises amid infrastructure expansion, energy transition goals and manufacturing growth. Also Read: India's mining sector moving beyond compliance-led approach to sustainability: Report "Looking ahead to India's aspiration of becoming a US$30 trillion economy by 2047, mining has the potential to play a disproportionately transformative role," the report said. It added that the sector "can generate up to 25 million incremental jobs, direct and indirect," while "contributing as much as US$500 billion in additional GDP." According to the report, the sector currently contributes around 2-3 per cent to India's GDP directly and supports several industries including steel, cement, power, automobiles and infrastructure. Live Events The report said India's mining industry is now moving beyond Mining 4.0, which focused mainly on automation and digitalisation, towards "Mining 5.0", where operations are increasingly driven by integrated decision-making systems powered by AI, digital twins, automation and advanced analytics. "Mining 5.0 represents this next evolution: A shift from volume-centric extraction to a value driven, technology-enabled, sustainable and human centric mining ecosystem," the report stated. The report noted that while many Indian mining companies have already adopted elements of Mining 4.0, digital capabilities still remain fragmented across operations. "Without integration, digital investments risk remaining isolated pilots with limited enterprise value," it said, adding that effective integration could help India build "system-level capabilities aligned to national priorities of energy security, sustainability and inclusive growth." Also Read: NMDC hikes iron ore prices by Rs 200 tonne According to Deloitte and ICC, the next phase of mining transformation will focus on integrating planning, production, logistics, maintenance, sustainability and safety into one connected decision-making ecosystem. The report further highlighted that India's mining sector is also being driven by policy reforms, rising steel demand, critical mineral requirements and the government's self-reliance push under Atmanirbhar Bharat. It added that technologies such as AI-based predictive safety systems, digital twins, autonomous operations, real-time monitoring systems and hybrid cloud-edge digital architectures are expected to play a key role in the future of Indian mining operations. "Mining 5.0 is not a technology roadmap; it is a leadership agenda," the report said, adding that future success will depend on "aligning operating models and incentives with value over volume" and "treating AI and data as enterprise capabilities, not functional tools." .Pbanner{display:flex;justify-content:space-between;align-items:center;background-color:#ec1c40;margin-top:20px;padding:5px 10px;border-radius:4px;color:#fff;line-height:10px;} .Pbannertext{display:flex;align-items:center;font-size:16px;font-weight:600;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannertext img{height:20px;margin:0 6px} .Pbannerbutton a{display:flex;align-items:center;background-color:#fff;color:#ec1c40;text-decoration:none;font-weight:600;padding:4px 8px;border-radius:6px;font-size:15px;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannerbutton img{height:20px;margin-right:6px} .Pbannerbutton a:hover{background-color:#f7f7f7} Add as a Reliable and Trusted News Source Add Now! (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel) (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel)
Officials say the reflective sheets are intended to confront anyone attempting to urinate in public with their own reflection, thereby discouraging the act psychologically View More
Emkay Global, meanwhile, stated that it expects JSW Steel to report Q4 consolidated EBITDA of ?8,420 crore (up 29.6% QoQ and 32% YoY), driven by higher realisations. View More
India is the world’s fastest-growing consumer market, and with cricket commanding near-religious devotion, investors are rushing to own IPL franchises. View More
Fans cheer from stands during the Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 final cricket match between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Punjab Kings at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on June 3, 2025. (Photo by Arun SANKAR / AFP) / -- IMAGE RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - STRICTLY NO COMMERCIAL USE -- (Photo by ARUN SANKAR/AFP via Getty Images) Arun Sankar | Afp | Getty Images Indian cricket is increasingly becoming hot property for investors looking to cash in on the booming business of the wildly popular sport in the subcontinent. In little over a month, the Indian Premier League, or IPL, has seen two of its franchises being sold to investors at billion-dollar-plus valuations, the latest being the Rajasthan Royals that was bought this Sunday, valued at $1.65 billion. A consortium of U.S. investors led by Kal Somani and backed by Rob Walton of Walmart Group was in the fray to acquire Rajasthan Royals, according to multiple media reports, but lost out to global steel magnate Laxmi Mittal and Indian vaccine tycoon Adar Poonawalla.Somani's group expressed disappointment at not being able to own the franchise, according to ESPN. "We were all motivated by the opportunity to help take the IPL to new international heights," the consortium reportedly said.In late March, a group comprising Blackstone and serial American sports investor David Blitzer acquired IPL's Royal Challengers Bengaluru, or RCB, franchise in a $1.8 billion deal.IPL is a fastâpaced, franchiseâbased cricket league launched in 2008 that blends top international and Indian talent. Played each year over nearly two months, it features 10 teams, offering a mix of highâintensity cricket, celebrity ownership, entertainment, and massive TV and streaming audiences. Promising returns A history of strong capital returns and potential to scale up the franchises backed by a fanbase of nearly a billion people is leading to heightened interest from global investors in the IPL, experts said."IPL has become highly attractive to investors because it combines strong capital appreciation potential with stable, recurring cash flows," James Walton, sports business group leader, Deloitte Asia Pacific, told CNBC in an email.On a per-match basis, IPL is already the second most valued sports league after the NFL, according to Deloitte. IPL valuation is estimated at $18.5 billion, as against the NFL's $227 billion and the NBA's $165 billion in 2025, but compared with IPL's 74 matches, NFL teams play 272 games, and 30 NBA teams play 82 games per team each season.Besides cash flows and valuations, investor returns have also been quite stellar. "Compared with global deal benchmarks, IPL returns stand out for their speed and growth profile," Walton said, estimating that private equity firm CVC Capital earned 350% return last year when it sold its 67% stake in IPL franchise Gujarat Titans. CVC had acquired Gujarat Titans in 2021. AHMEDABAD, INDIA - JUNE 03: Virat Kohli of Royal Challengers Bengaluru lifts the IPL trophy alongside teammates following the team's victory in the 2025 IPL Final match between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Punjab Kings at Narendra Modi Stadium on June 03, 2025, in Ahmedabad, India. Pankaj Nangia | Getty Images Sport | Getty Images Take the case of RCB, a franchise that has a huge fan base despite it winning the league only once since its inception.RCB returned 37 times the invested capital after being sold for 166 billion rupees in March. Indian businessman Vijay Mallya, the former owner of United Spirits, recently disclosed he bought RCB for 4.5 billion rupees. In 2013, when Diageo acquired United Spirits, RCB's ownership was transferred to the liquor maker. "[IPL] Franchise valuations have multiplied several times over the past decade, with returns that are competing with top US leagues," said Gareth Berlee, director at Singapore-based Mason Rae Capital, which specializes in fundraising for sports assets. Compared to the NBA and the English Premier League, India's cricket league is at an early stage of maturity, so while the absolute value is lower, the growth trajectory will be steep, experts said."In my opinion, investors are buying into what US assets looked like 12-15 years ago, but this time with a much larger population and digital audience upside," Berlee said in an email response to CNBC.The next phase of growth will be globalization of leagues, deeper monetization of digital audiences, and commercial expansion beyond matchday revenues, he said. Some of it is already underway. Powering the IPL As per market research firm Nielsen, more than 66% of people in India are cricket fans â about 950 million. That offers enormous growth potential as rising disposable incomes drive spending on tickets and merchandise, experts told CNBC.Fans are buying tickets at price points that would have been "unthinkable a few years ago," said Amitesh Shah, founder of sports management firm LegaXy, adding that engagement of fans with the sport "does not stop when the last ball is bowled." They are spending on merchandise, subscribing to platforms specifically to follow their teams, and engaging with brand campaigns in ways that end up in purchases, Shah said. IPL teams are now full-fledged sports and entertainment franchises. The IPL 2025 season was watched by more than 1 billion people across television channels and digital platforms and led to 3.83 billion interactions across social media. About 44% of those viewing also engaged with a free-to-play, live quiz game during match time. There could be no better example of the pull these franchises have among the local and Indian diaspora fan base than the Mittal family, whose roots are in the state of Rajasthan. "I love cricket, and my family is from Rajasthan, so there is no IPL team that I would rather be part of than the Rajasthan Royals," Mittal said in a statement announcing the acquisition.From a buyer's perspective, IPL ticks all the right boxes and is the only profitable bet that investors can take on Indian sports as of now, experts said. It has a colossal and growing fanbase, earnings are predictable as revenues from media rights come through before the start of the season, and there are few external risks, said Karan Kalra, managing partner at law firm Bombay Law Chambers. Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.
This rise is attributed to increased demand for Capesize vessels, tightening ship supply, and disruptions in iron ore exports. The conflict in the Middle East has also contributed to the upward trend in freight rates. View More
A key measure of bulk-shipping rates jumped to the highest level since December 2023, driven by rising demand for Capesize vessels along with tightening supply of ships that haul bulk commodities. The Baltic Dry Index surged 5.6% to 2,991 points on Wednesday, extending gains for a fourth session. The gauge tracks freight rates for Capesize, Panamax, and Supramax ships transporting raw materials such as iron ore, coal and grain. The Capesize market has “strengthened sharply over the past two weeks” on tightening ship availability in the Pacific, disruptions to iron ore exports from Brazil, and hedging of future freight rates, said Pranay Shukla, the head of dry bulk freight and commodities research at S&P Global Energy. Bloomberg Strong bulk commodity exports in April are expected to continue this month and into June, according to data from S&P Global Energy. The Capesize segment on the Baltic Dry Index accounts for about 40% of the gauge, and is the section most exposed to iron ore, used to make steel. The conflict in the Middle East has also played a part in higher rates. The Iran war has been a “volatility-driven accelerator, amplifying freight market moves and lifting sentiment,” according to shipbroker Ifchor Galbraiths. Iron ore futures in Singapore were little changed at $110.70 a ton as of 11:49 a.m. local time after rising 1.8% in the previous session to settle at the highest since October 2024. The move came as China returned from a holiday. Live Events .Pbanner{display:flex;justify-content:space-between;align-items:center;background-color:#ec1c40;margin-top:20px;padding:5px 10px;border-radius:4px;color:#fff;line-height:10px;} .Pbannertext{display:flex;align-items:center;font-size:16px;font-weight:600;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannertext img{height:20px;margin:0 6px} .Pbannerbutton a{display:flex;align-items:center;background-color:#fff;color:#ec1c40;text-decoration:none;font-weight:600;padding:4px 8px;border-radius:6px;font-size:15px;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannerbutton img{height:20px;margin-right:6px} .Pbannerbutton a:hover{background-color:#f7f7f7} Add as a Reliable and Trusted News Source Add Now!
At least 10 companies are considering reducing their planned IPO sizes to ensure successful listings amid declining investor appetite. This flexibility, allowed by the capital market regulator, permits companies to cut issue sizes by up to half without refiling. Sectors like NBFC, jewellery, and healthcare are among those exploring this option to navigate current market conditions. View More
Mumbai: At least 10 companies are weighing plans to slash the size of their planned initial public offerings (IPOs) to ensure that these succeed amid shrinking risk appetite that's made investors more selective about fund deployment, according to investment bankers and valuation experts. This follows the capital market regulator allowing companies with approvals to prune issue sizes by as much as half without refiling papers for IPOs opening before September 30. The companies have been in talks with institutional investors to gauge their interest in smaller IPO sizes, the bankers said. "We are aware of at least eight to 10 companies which are open to cutting the issue size," said Dev Chandrasekhar, founder of Transcendum - a Mumbai-based valuations and strategic advisory firm. The companies are said to be in the non-banking finance company (NBFC), jewellery, food, packaging, healthcare and steel sectors. They plan to push through with their IPOs over the next 2-4 months if the secondary market remains stable, said the people cited. AgenciesMove follows Sebi letting companies prune offer size without refiling IPO papers "This is particularly beneficial for large issuers," said Bhavesh Shah, MD and head of investment banking at Equirus Capital. "Their deals depend heavily on institutional participation, which can shift quickly with market sentiment , so flexible sizing helps avoid under-subscription or pricing pressure." Live Events As many as 146 companies have received Sebi approval to raise a total over ₹2 lakh crore. Of this, approvals of 43 companies are valid only until September, according to Prime Database. Out of the 146 companies, a significant chunk is targeting large fundraises. As many as 45 plan issues of ₹1,000 crore and above, according to Prime Database. Within this, 77 companies fall in the ₹1,001-2,000 crore bracket, while 20 are looking at ₹2,001-5,000 crore issues. One is aiming as high as ₹9,000 crore. In a one-off move in April, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) allowed companies with IPO approvals to increase or decrease the fresh issue size by up to 50% without submitting a new draft offer document, giving them more flexibility to adjust to volatile market conditions and lower investor appetite amid the West Asia war and other pressures. The rules otherwise require companies to refile a draft prospectus if the issue size changes by more than 20% from the original estimate. At the mid-sized level, 27 companies have issue sizes between ₹500 crore and ₹950 crore, while 22 are in the ₹150-500 crore bracket. “Smaller companies will use this Sebi window to recalibrate, not retreat,” said Chandrasekhar. “The smart move is to trim the OFS (offer-for-sale) portion when promoter exits look greedy against weak demand, while keeping the fresh issue intact so the business still gets funded.” For these entities, it could mean trimming the offer to better align with real-time investor demand, which should improve subscription levels, under subscription or last-minute withdrawal, said Samir Bahl, CEO, Anand Rathi Advisors. “Smaller companies in the Rs 200–400 crore range are indeed more likely to use this provision to recalibrate their issue sizes,” he said. Generally, companies consider cutting the IPO size closer to the launch of the issue. Sebi rules stipulate that companies going public should have provided financial data that’s only up to six months old. Companies with the December quarter as the latest earnings period in the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) must launch their IPOs by June. “Uncertainties owing to the geopolitical crisis are having an impact on the IPO market and if this continues, we might see some issuers recalibrate deal sizes closer to launch,” said Prashant Singhal, partner and India markets leader, EY. However, this change would be less about cutting deal sizes and more about getting valuation right, he said. According to Abhishek Sharma, founder and managing director of GYR Capital Advisors, a merchant banking firm, “Several companies, at least four or five that I am aware of, are already considering reducing their issue sizes.” Chandrasekhar said eventually many more companies, especially large companies, will look to push through the IPOs by cutting the IPO size. .Pbanner{display:flex;justify-content:space-between;align-items:center;background-color:#ec1c40;margin-top:20px;padding:5px 10px;border-radius:4px;color:#fff;line-height:10px;} .Pbannertext{display:flex;align-items:center;font-size:16px;font-weight:600;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannertext img{height:20px;margin:0 6px} .Pbannerbutton a{display:flex;align-items:center;background-color:#fff;color:#ec1c40;text-decoration:none;font-weight:600;padding:4px 8px;border-radius:6px;font-size:15px;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannerbutton img{height:20px;margin-right:6px} .Pbannerbutton a:hover{background-color:#f7f7f7} Add as a Reliable and Trusted News Source Add Now! 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India's steel sector showed strong growth in April 2026. Production and consumption of steel increased significantly. This performance reflects robust domestic demand and steady activity in infrastructure and manufacturing. Steel companies are investing in capacity expansion. Green steel initiatives are progressing with certifications issued to many producers. Domestic steel prices are recovering. The industry is well-positioned for continued growth. View More
India’s steel sector maintained its growth momentum in April 2026, registering year on year increases across key production and consumption indicators, according to a PIB prerelease. The performance reflects sustained domestic demand and stable activity in infrastructure and manufacturing. Crude steel production stood at 14.09 million tonnes in April 2026, marking a 5.8 percent increase compared with 13.31 million tonnes in April 2025. Hot metal output rose by 5.4 percent year on year. Pig iron production declined by 6 percent to 0.69 million tonnes. Finished steel production reached 13.05 million tonnes, recording a 3.4 percent rise year on year. Consumption of finished steel stood at 12.99 million tonnes, up 8.1 percent, indicating continued strength in construction, infrastructure and manufacturing sectors. India remained a marginal net importer during April 2026, with imports at 0.68 million tonnes and exports at 0.47 million tonnes. Compared with April 2025, imports increased by 30.8 percent from 0.52 million tonnes, while exports rose by 24.9 percent from 0.38 million tonnes. India’s total steelmaking capacity reached approximately 220 million tonnes per annum in the financial year 2025 to 2026, progressing towards the National Steel Policy target of 300 million tonnes per annum by 2030. Major companies including SAIL , Tata Steel , JSW Steel , JSPL and AMNS continued to invest in capacity expansion. Live Events Tata Steel recently commissioned a scrap based electric arc furnace green steel plant with a capacity of 0.75 million tonnes per annum in Ludhiana, with an investment of ₹3,200 crore. The facility is the first of its kind in Punjab. Under the Ministry of Steel’s Green Steel Initiative , the National Institute of Secondary Steel Technology continued to act as the nodal agency for measurement, reporting, verification and certification. As of March 31, 2026, green steel certificates had been issued to 90 producers across 15 states. The certified products include TMT bars, hot rolled and cold rolled coils, wire rods and pipes. A majority of these products have received the highest five star rating, indicating strong participation among secondary and mid size producers. Domestic steel prices showed recovery across major categories in April 2026. TMT and rebar prices increased by around 2.6 percent month on month and recorded a 3 percent rise year on year, marking the first positive annual trend after several months. Flat steel prices registered stronger gains, with hot rolled coil prices rising by about 6.3 percent and galvanised plain sheet prices increasing by around 7.3 percent on a monthly basis. Raw material prices displayed a mixed but largely firm trend. Domestic iron ore prices rose by about 10 to 11 percent month on month, reflecting improved demand from the steel sector, while global iron ore prices remained stable. International coking coal prices continued to rise on a monthly basis, keeping input costs elevated for integrated producers. Scrap prices in the international market remained largely unchanged, providing stability for electric route steelmakers. The Indian steel industry is well placed to sustain growth, supported by continued infrastructure investment and expanding manufacturing activity. Managing energy security, fluctuations in raw material costs and global trade developments will remain key challenges in the coming year. .Pbanner{display:flex;justify-content:space-between;align-items:center;background-color:#ec1c40;margin-top:20px;padding:5px 10px;border-radius:4px;color:#fff;line-height:10px;} .Pbannertext{display:flex;align-items:center;font-size:16px;font-weight:600;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannertext img{height:20px;margin:0 6px} .Pbannerbutton a{display:flex;align-items:center;background-color:#fff;color:#ec1c40;text-decoration:none;font-weight:600;padding:4px 8px;border-radius:6px;font-size:15px;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannerbutton img{height:20px;margin-right:6px} .Pbannerbutton a:hover{background-color:#f7f7f7} Add as a Reliable and Trusted News Source Add Now! (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel) (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel)