Tata Steel to raise prices

Tata Steel Ltd., which acquired Corus Group Plc for $12 billion in January, will raise prices for the second straight month as construction and automobile companies in India increase orders to meet demand. Prices of so-called long products for immediate delivery will be raised by as much as 2 percent, or 600 rupees ($15) a ton, from tomorrow, Deputy Managing Director T. Mukherjee said in a telephone interview today from the eastern Indian city of Jamshedpur, where Tata's factory is located. Tata is also scouting for iron ore and coal mines in Brazil, Australia, Canada and several African countries, he said. Indian steelmakers are raising prices as demand increases in China and India, the world's fastest-growing major economies. Tata's decision matched yesterday's increase by Steel Authority of India Ltd., the nation's biggest state-run steelmaker. The price of so-called rebar, a benchmark long product, will increase to about 26,600 rupees in the immediate delivery market, Mukherjee said. Tata, one of the lowest-cost steelmakers in India, faces competition for raw materials as it expands overseas and prices of iron ore and coal increase. ``Securing supplies is key to Tata Steel's global plans as its own mines will mostly be used to meet its requirement in India,'' said Sanjay Makhija, vice president at Mumbai-based Fortune Financial Services. Tata Steel agreed to buy a stake in a Mozambique coal mine in August for $86 million. The coal will be used to produce steel at its plants in Europe, Mukherjee said. ``We are looking for iron ore mines for our European operations and depending on the location of the coal mine, we will decide whether to use it for operations in India or Europe,'' he said. Tata Steel and Corus combined produce about 25 million tons a year. Capacity may more than double to 56 million tons by 2015 after the three new plants planned in the eastern Indian states of Orissa, Jharkhand and Chattisgarh start production, Chairman Ratan Tata said in a letter to shareholders in July.