NEW DELHI, Feb 27 Reuters India39;s steel imports touched a sixyear high in the first 10 months of the fiscal year to March, led by Chinese shipments, and India was a net importer of finished steel, according to provisional government data seen by Reuters on Tuesday.

The demand for steel was strong in India, the world39;s secondbiggest crude steel producer, as the country remained a bright spot globally with robust demand from its construction and automotive sectors.

Steel consumption in India jumped 14.5 to a sixyear high of 112.5 million metric tons during the period, reflecting buoyant demand for the alloy in one of the world39;s fastestgrowing economies.

India39;s steel demand is likely to stay strong as the government expects economic growth will outpace the global economy in the next fiscal year.

India imported 6.7 million metric tons of finished steel between April and January, up 35 from a year earlier, the data showed.

India39;s steel mills have called for government interventions and safeguard measures against surging imports. However, the federal Ministry of Steel has resisted calls for curbs, citing strong local demand.

China was the top exporter of finished steel to India between April and January, shipping 2.18 million metric tons of the alloy, up 80 from the same period a year earlier to hit a sixyear high.

China primarily exported hotrolled and coldrolled steel products followed by galvanised plain and corrugated sheets as well as plates and pipes…