India’s competitors watchdog has discovered market chief Tata Metal, JSW Metal, state-owned SAIL and 25 different corporations violated antitrust legal guidelines by colluding to repair metal gross sales costs, placing the businesses and their executives prone to hefty fines, confidential paperwork reveal.
The Competitors Fee of India (CCI) has additionally held 56 executives, together with JSW’s billionaire managing director Sajjan Jindal, Tata Metal CEO TV Narendran, and 4 former SAIL chairman, for value fixing over varied durations between 2015 and 2023, in accordance with an October 6 CCI order, which has not but been made public and is being reported for the primary time.
JSW declined to remark, whereas Tata Metal, SAIL and executives didn’t reply. Reuters question. CCI additionally didn’t reply to requests for remark.
The CCI investigation, the highest-profile case involving the metal business, started in 2021 after a bunch of development corporations filed a legal criticism in state courtroom alleging 9 corporations had been working collectively to restrict the provision of metal and lift costs. Reuters In 2022, the watchdog reported raids on a number of small metal corporations as a part of an business investigation.
The CCI’s October order then expanded the probe to as many as 31 corporations and business associations and dozens of executives for consideration by the CCI. Reuterssignifies. Below CCI guidelines, particulars of circumstances involving cartel-like actions usually are not made public till their conclusion.
The CCI’s investigation “discovered that the events’ conduct violated” India’s antitrust legal guidelines and “sure people had been additionally held liable,” the order stated.
The findings are at an essential stage in antitrust litigation.
These might be scrutinized by CCI executives, corporations and executives, with a possibility to submit objections and feedback in a course of that’s more likely to take a number of months, given the dimensions of the investigation.
The CCI will then concern a ultimate order, which might be made out there to the general public.
Danger of huge fines
India is the world’s second-largest producer of crude metal, and demand for the alloy is rising as infrastructure spending will increase in fast-growing main economies.
JSW Metal has a 17.5% share of the Indian market, Tata Metal 13.3% and SAIL 10%, in accordance with information from commodity consultancy Bigmint.
Within the final fiscal yr ending March 2025, JSW Metal’s standalone gross sales had been $14.2 billion, whereas Tata Metal’s gross sales had been $14.7 billion.
The CCI is empowered to impose a superb on metal corporations of 3 times their revenue or 10% of their turnover, whichever is increased, for every year of fraud. Particular person executives is also fined.
JSW and SAIL denied the allegations to the CCI, in accordance with two individuals acquainted with the matter, who requested anonymity as a result of the matter is confidential.
One in every of them stated that the JSW had additionally submitted a reply to the CCI and denied the allegations.
As of 8:52 a.m. Japan time, JSW Metal inventory widened its loss to 1.33%, SAIL inventory fell 3.2%, and Tata Metal inventory turned unfavourable, falling 0.7%. The key Nifty metallic index additionally turned unfavourable in Mumbai commerce.
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The CCI initiated the case after the Coimbatore Company Contractors Welfare Affiliation filed a case in a Tamil Nadu courtroom in 2021, alleging that the metal corporations had elevated costs by 55% within the six months ending March 11, 2021, artificially inflating costs by limiting provide to builders and shoppers.
After prosecutors stated the problem was an antitrust concern, the decide ordered the CCI to take “applicable motion” on the affiliation’s criticism, whose members are concerned in highway and freeway development.
Different corporations alleged to have colluded on costs within the CCI paperwork embrace Shyam Metal Industries, the state-run Rashtriya Ispat Nigam and different small corporations. Shyam and Rashtriya didn’t reply. Reuters question.
In keeping with its October order, the CCI has requested metal corporations to submit audited monetary statements for eight monetary years as much as 2023. Watchdogs sometimes have a look at such particulars to calculate potential penalties.
Though the October order didn’t present particulars of the proof analyzed, an inside CCI doc from July 2025 stated the company had found WhatsApp messages suggesting fraudulent exercise exchanged between regional commerce associations of metal merchandise producers.
The July doc stated the messages “point out that they’re concerned in value fixing and manufacturing cuts.”
issued – January 6, 2026 11:14 PM IST
