Granite barons back home are worried about a decline in exports as China, a major market, continues to battle the coronavirus epidemic.
Chinese nationals visiting granite units in the district has been a regular sight. They usually visit several units in search of high-quality granite blocks which will be exported to Chinese cities. Now, their footfalls have dwindled as a fallout of the deadly epidemic that has gripped the central Chinese city of Wuhan, with local granite barons in Chimakurthy fearing a slump in business until the eastern neighbour gets on top of the nCoV situation.
Much of the world-famous granite mined in the district finds its way to Beijing and other Chinese cities. Exports of rough blocks began ahead of the Summer Olympics held in Beijing in 2008. Now, the granite industry is keeping its fingers crossed, waiting for the dreaded virus to be rooted out.
China accounts for at least 80% of about 1.30 lakh cubic metres of rough blocks quarried per year, according to sources in the Mines Department.
While exports to China will be impacted in the short run, now is a good time for domestic granite processing units to step up exports of value-added granite slabs to the United States, Europe and West Asian countries, feel industry veterans at the Gullapalli Growth Centre who are looking forward to cash in on the trade war between China and the U.S.
“We are hoping that the coronavirus is tackled quickly. A clear picture is likely to emerge only after a couple of months as rough granite blocks that have already been shipped off are anchored in ports or have not been lifted,” they said.
Silver lining
Experts said that while exports to China have halted, there is the possibility of finding new markets across the globe as importers might be wary of sourcing value-added household surfacing material from China and can turn to India instead. This can prove to be a blessing in disguise for exporters of processed granite slabs, said an official at the Building Products Special Economic Zone which is promoted by the Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (APIIC) at Gullapalli.
“We hope to see an encouraging demand for natural-coloured material from overseas buyers this year,” Jyothi Granite Exports Chief Operating Officer M. Shivaram said in a conversation with The Hindu here.
Export of natural stone material like Black Pearl, Steel Grey, Viscount White, Moon White and River White from the SEZ is likely to go up by more than 20% from 60,000 cubic metres of processed material from the 100% export-oriented units in the SEZ and elsewhere in the district last year, feels Krishnasai Granites executive director Bharat.
Meanwhile, local granite cutting and polishing units, who have been facing a shortage of quality slabs for processing, hope to get it in the wake of the dip in demand from overseas players.
“We have been requesting successive State Governments for 40% quota of rough blocks for domestic consumption but have failed to get a positive response. Now, the situation is likely to improve to our advantage,” Granite Industries’ Association president Y. Koteswara Rao said.
