Steel dealers at the Chambers of Commerce have said that rebar prices went up by LE200 per ton, while prices of the local produce remained the same.
“Prices went up when the government hinted anti-dumping duties on imported steel,” said Ahmed al-Zeiny, head of the Building Materials Division of the Cairo Chamber of Commerce.
Zeiny called on the government not to restrict imports, as variety in supply stabilizes prices.
For his part, Samir Naaman, president of the Building Materials Council, said the local factories did not change prices this month, explaining that the factories announce prices for dealers and consumers at the beginning of each month.
“Some small factories reduced prices by as little as LE10 per ton to motivate dealers,” he said. “But prices in general were stabilized at LE5000 per ton.”
Meanwhile an official at the Federation of Chambers of Commerce said the federation is against anti-dumping duties on imported steel.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
