Vice President Ashish Thakkar from JFE Shoji India Pvt. Ltd. was a presenter and also joined a panel discussion at BigMint India Ferrous Week 2025, which took place at the JW Marriott Hotel in Kolkata from August 19 to 21. Sponsored by BigMint, an independent research and intelligence platform focusing on the Indian iron and steel industry, this event is one of the industry’s biggest conferences.

Ashish led a session entitled “Imported Scrap Under Strain: How Global Trade and Policy Shifts Are Reshaping the New Reality of Scrap Sourcing,” which drew over eight hundred industry professionals involved in various iron-based materials including iron ore, pellets, DRI (direct reduced iron), scrap, steel products and coal. The session featured lively discussions between the panelists and audience.

During his presentation, Ashish gave an overview of JFE Shoji before discussing the shift toward electric arc furnaces in Japan, the potential for scrap exports, and current trends in scrap imports to India. During a subsequent panel session, he joined a discussion on topics such as the differences in procurement routes between India and Bangladesh, and whether Japan could provide a stable source of scrap to steel mills on India’s east coast.

His appearance here was made possible by the industry’s favorable reception of the JFE Shoji Group’s expansion of scrap sales from Japan and other exporters, and by the relationship of trust he has built with BigMint during fifteen years of continuous information exchange.

After the session, Ashish commented: “This was a valuable opportunity to directly convey the story of the JFE Shoji Group’s growth in India and our future outlook to industry leaders. It was a great honor to be the only representative of a Japanese trading company to present and participate as a panelist. We will continue working to expand our business in India.”