Rajkot: Escalating price of metals is causing increasing difficulties to engineering industries in Rajkot.

The traders are facing difficulties in fulfilling the orders due to price-hike in raw materials. Rajkot Engineering Association president Paresh Vasani said, “The works including casting, forging, auto-parts, machine tools and components are done to a huge extent in Rajkot. The orderbooks of traders are full but supplying the goods after production is not feasible. There is a price hike in raw materials such as copper, steel, cast iron, craft paper and zinc. So, selling has to be done at lower prices after buying raw materials at high cost.”

He added that buyers don’t accept the price-hike executed on finished products. The mistrust spreads among the buyers due to constant variation in prices, he said.

Steel, copper, stainless steel, roads, EN8 steel, electrical steel, CRCA steel, aluminum, cast iron, craft paper, raisin and zinc are used to a huge extent in engineering industries in Rajkot. There has been 50 to 60 percent increase in prices in most of them.

The producers have affected a 20 percent price hike in pumps and motors due to usage of steel in them. There is a 40 to 60 % price-hike in the raw materials of plastic such as PVC, ABS, Polypropylene, PC, PFT. DeshGujarat