India: BigMint's billet index declines further by INR 100/t d-o-d - 22 Jan

• Market uncertainty drives volatility across regions

  
  
  

• Buyers make opportunistic purchases in 2nd half
  
  

BigMint's billet index decreased by INR 100/tonne (t) d-o-d to INR 38,500/t exw-Raipur on 22 January 2025, continuing the downtrend observed over the past two days.

The index experienced a further decline today, reflecting the ongoing cautious market environment. Mixed trends were observed across regions, in response to the current uncertainty in the steel market. Modest buying activity was observed in the second half of the trading session, particularly in the semi-finished and finished steel segments. This uptick in activity was likely driven by opportunistic purchases amid d-o-d volatile market sentiments.

The conversion spread from sponge iron (PDRI) to billets for standalone furnaces in the region was recorded at INR 14,450/t.

Rationale

This index has been derived based on transactions, offers, bids, and indicative price data sets. Transactions are considered as T1 and given a weightage of 50%, whereas other data sets are considered as T2 and given a weightage of the balance 50%.

• Transactions (T1) - Two trades at INR 38,400-38,500/t were recorded between 2:30 pm and 5:30 pm during the BigMint trading window. These were considered for the final price calculation as T1 inputs. The average price of these transactions was INR 38,440/t, which was assigned a 50% weightage in the final price calculation.
  
  
• Other price indicators - bids/offers/indicatives (T2) - Ten offers were reported during the trading window and considered as T2 inputs. The average price of these ten offers was INR 38,525/t, which was assigned a 50% weightage in the final price calculation.
  
  

The final price of billets exw-Raipur was assessed to be INR 38,482/t, rounded off to INR 38,500/t exw.

Click here for detailed methodology