Daily Pour

Date: 26/06/2026   Issue No.: 3872/25-26

Compiled By: Aarti Ghag, Executive Officer - WR

B. Ramchandran, Chennai

IIF News

Dear Foundrymen,

 

With Regards,

Mrs. Aarti Ghag

Executive Officer, IIF-WR

 7303511171

Thought of the Day

News Letter Supported By

Today's Top Raw Materials Headlines

*** India to discuss EU waste shipment rules affecting scrap imports

*** India's raw material imports jump in 2026

*** India: SAIL-BSL pig iron auction achieves full allocation amid INR 800/t w-o-w bid increase

*** India: Ferro silicon prices continue to fall amid cautious market sentiment

*** Chinese Zinc Ingot price goes down

*** Chinese Ferro Moly price stays stable 

Raw Material News

Rupee Rises on Falling Crude Prices

India Currency
The Indian rupee strengthened to around 94.3 per dollar,reversing earlier losses and positioning for further gains as crude oil prices fell below levels seen before the Iran conflict. In the previous session, the rupee briefly neared the 95-per-dollar level before rebounding, supported by likely Reserve Bank of India intervention and comments from RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra that weighed on forward premium levels. Support for the rupee was reinforced by a steep correction in global energy markets following the announcement of a 60-day negotiating period between the United States and Iran. The retreat in energy costs has eased worries about imported inflation for major oil-importing economies such as India. European natural gas prices have fallen about 45% from their wartime peak, while crude oil prices have declined roughly 40%. Brent crude has slipped below $80 per barrel, dropping beneath levels recorded before the Iran conflict escalated, and US crude is approaching the $70 mark.

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India's Retail Lending Sector Enters Multi-Decade Growth Cycle, Says Report

India's retail lending sector is entering a multi-decade growth cycle, driven by digital underwriting, financial inclusion, and rising household incomes. The report by Anand Rathi Advisors highlights low mortgage penetration at 11% of GDP, significant growth potential in gold loans projected to reach $158 billion by FY31, and vehicle loan market growing at 10-12% annually. Technology-led underwriting, digital distribution, and co-lending partnerships are reshaping the credit ecosystem. Despite challenges like interest-rate cycles and regulatory changes, the sector offers strong structural growth opportunities.The report, analyses the evolving landscape of housing finance, vehicle finance, gold loans and unsecured lending, highlighting the growing role of technology, data-driven underwriting and digital distribution in reshaping the credit ecosystem.

According to the report, India is among the fastest-growing retail lending markets globally, aided by low mortgage penetration, underpenetrated vehicle financing and increasing formalisation of gold lending. The report noted that favourable demographics, rapid urbanisation and technology-led credit delivery are expected to support sustained long-term growth. The study highlighted that mortgage penetration in India remains at around 11 per cent of GDP, significantly lower than in developed markets, indicating substantial growth potential. It also pointed to rising demand for affordable housing and the increasing adoption of digital underwriting models in the housing finance segment.
In vehicle finance, the report observed strong opportunities across passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles and used vehicle financing. The sector is also expected to benefit from growing electric vehicle adoption and the emergence of captive finance models. India's vehicle loan market is currently growing at an estimated annual rate of 10-12 per cent, the report said.

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India: SAIL-BSL pig iron auction achieves full allocation amid INR 800/t w-o-w bid increase

SAIL-BSL auctioned 14,000 t of steel-grade pig iron on 24 Jun'26, with the entire offered quantity sold at an average price of INR 36,400/t exw. Bids increased by INR 800/t from the previous auction on 17 Jun, when 7,000 t was fully booked at INR 35,600/t exw. The successful sale of a larger volume at higher prices indicates improved buying sentiment, with participants showing strong interest amid attractive pricing and firm market fundamentals.

Industry News

India Refuses US Trade Deal Without Competitive Edge: Goyal

India will not sign a trade deal with the US unless it secures a clear competitive advantage over rival economies, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said. He stated that discussions focus on creating a legal framework for preferential market access for Indian exporters. Goyal's remarks came after trade talks with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in New Delhi. India seeks tariff reduction from 50% to 18% to gain an edge over competitors.

India will not enter into a trade agreement with the United States unless it secures a clear competitive advantage over rival economies, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said on Thursday.

"Until the framework for getting competitive advantage is finalised, we cannot enter into a US deal - Piyush Goyal"

Speaking during a two-day visit to London, Goyal said India would only proceed with the agreement once Washington establishes a legal and policy framework that offers Indian exporters preferential market access compared to competing countries.

"Until the framework for getting competitive advantage is finalised, we cannot enter into a US deal," Goyal said, adding that discussions are focused on how the US can create the necessary legal backing to provide India with such an advantage.

His remarks come a day after he concluded trade talks in New Delhi with United States Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.

Following the meeting, the commerce ministry said both sides remained committed to expanding bilateral trade and advancing negotiations under the proposed bilateral trade agreement, though it did not indicate any breakthrough on the unresolved issues.

The latest round marked the third set of negotiations since India and the US announced plans for an interim trade pact earlier this year. The agreement was initially negotiated at a time when the US had imposed steep tariffs on Indian goods under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).

According to Goyal, India had negotiated the deal on the assumption that the effective tariff burden on Indian exports would be reduced from around 50 per cent to 18 per cent, giving Indian products a significant edge over competing economies.

"There were IEEPA tariffs when we finalised the deal. We had about 50 per cent tariff on India, so we had negotiated the deal based on bringing down the 50 per cent tariff to 18 per cent," Goyal said. He added that the proposed reduction was attractive because it would have provided India with a comparative advantage over neighbouring countries and other competitors.

— IANS

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Tata Motors Puts Quality at Centre of Next Growth Phase 

Carmaker says product quality, software validation and predictive diagnostics will drive its next phase of growth as vehicle complexity rises.

After spending the past few years expanding its product portfolio and nearly quintupling passenger vehicle volumes, Tata Motors is shifting its focus to an area where it has historically faced criticism – quality.

At its Investor Day, the country's third-largest passenger vehicle maker said product quality will be the cornerstone of its next phase of growth, backed by artificial intelligence (AI), digital twins, software validation, Total Quality Management (TQM) and deeper supplier integration.

The company said the transformation comes at a time when vehicles are becoming increasingly software-driven and technologically complex, making conventional quality processes inadequate.

"On product quality... there are two stress points as far as quality is concerned. One is steep growth, leads to the system coming under stress and the second is the new tech. Therefore, we have to prepare the system proactively rather than reactively," Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Shailesh Chandra said.

The renewed emphasis marks a strategic shift for Tata Motors, which over the past few years has focused on launching new products across internal combustion engine (ICE), CNG and electric vehicle (EV) segments. The company has grown its portfolio from six products in FY20 to 15 in FY26, while passenger vehicle volumes have increased almost five-fold to 640,000 units over the same period. As scale and product complexity rise, Tata Motors said world-class quality has become critical to sustaining growth.

The company said it has already made progress, reducing early-life vehicle issues by nearly 60 per cent through tighter factory quality gates, improved logistics processes and electronic proof-of-delivery systems.

To further strengthen quality, Tata Motors will deploy system-level simulations, early product validation and stricter manufacturing controls while investing in digital engineering tools such as hardware-in-loop testing, software-in-loop validation and digital twins.

"Given the number of new softwares and new technologies which are coming in, you have to create this digital infrastructure of hardware-in-loop, software-in-loop, digital twins to ensure that you do not always need a physical test... but are able to fully model it and test it within the development process itself," Chandra said.

The company also plans to use AI and telematics data to predict defects before they occur and continuously improve product performance.

"State-of-the-art quality infrastructure across our plants will enable precision manufacturing, leverage data and AI especially to identify early defects, prediction and continuous learning," Chandra said.

Beyond manufacturing, Tata Motors is extending the quality programme across engineering, suppliers and customer service. Chandra said Total Quality Management would become "a way of life" across the organisation and supplier ecosystem through structured problem-solving and prevention tools.

The company is also introducing AI-based diagnostic tools in its service network to reduce repair time and repeat failures.

"Going forward you will have diagnostic tools which are AI based which completely maps the fault tree and is able to immediately identify the real problem and therefore the turnaround times become higher, the repeat failures reduce," Chandra said.

Life Style and Management

Success is a journey, not a destination

Success is a journey, not a destination. Equip yourself for the road ahead, stay organized, and embrace every opportunity with confidence. For Everyone: Invest in reliability—whether in people, tools, or habits. Smart decisions today lead to better outcomes tomorrow.
Success Starts with Smart Preparation—And the Right Gear Makes All the Difference. A successful journey requires more than just ambition—it demands foresight We don’t need to do it all today.
But we do need to start.
Even if it's a small step.

Growth isn’t always loud.
Sometimes, it’s quiet - and uncomfortable.

- Saying no without guilt
- Showing up without validation
- Choosing rest over hustle

All these are forms of growth.

We often expect growth to “look” like success.

But real growth feels more like shedding.

- Letting go of old beliefs.
- Outgrowing old versions of you.
- Making space for who you’re becoming.

I’ve learned not to rush it.
Not to chase it.

Just to stay present with it.

Because personal growth isn’t a goal.
It’s a practice.

Jokes All the Way......

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The Institute of Indian Foundrymen