Tata Steel Managing Director B Muthuraman has hinted that steel prices in the domestic market would stabilise in the coming months despite a record surge in the consumption during the first four months of the current fiscal year (2003-04).

"Prices could dip and stabilise in the next six months when the supply-demand ratio will be rationalized with more steel production from new small and medium plants," Muthuraman told the media in Bangalore on Wednesday.

Disclosing that in the first 4 months of the current fiscal, the steel consumption in the Indian market had shot up by a record 50 percent over the corresponding period of last fiscal (2002-03), Muthuraman said the demand would continue to be on the upswing, thanks to the increasing housing/industrial construction activity and the ongoing quadrilateral/national highway infrastructure projects.

"Demand is also coming from the automobile / two-wheeler sectors and greater consumption of steel for consumer and industrial appliances," Muthuraman stated.

Admitting that the prices were still on the high, Muthuraman said prices for the flat steel products would, however, continue to remain at the current level due to the demand from infrastructure and industrial sectors being more than the supply in the market.

"In the long run, prices will stabilise for the flat products too," he added.