India: BigMint's ferrous scrap index rises by INR 500/t d-o-d amid robust trade - 26 Sept'24

• Raw material prices continue to rise
  
  
• Semis', finished steel prices improve
  
  

BigMint's domestic end-cutting scrap index tracking the Mandi Gobindgarh market increased by INR 500/t to INR 38,000/t DAP. Today, the mandi scrap market experienced robust trading activity, while the semi-finished and finished steel markets observed moderate conditions.

Mandi mills' commentary

The semi-finished steel market experienced decent trading activity in the first half of the session. However, in the second half, prices saw an increase from sellers, while buyers adopted a wait-and-see approach.

Recently, the tight supply of steel scrap and ongoing GST inspections at the borders have posed significant challenges for scrap traders. These issues have also created hurdles for mandi mills.

An official representing a rerolling unit informed BigMint that the market has shown improvement over the last few days. However, today traders are cutting back on trade volumes. Despite rising prices, demand has not kept pace with the increase.

Raw materials' overview

Sponge iron (CDRI) prices increased by INR 200/t to INR 31,200/t DAP in Mandi, driven by good demand. In Ludhiana, pig iron (steel grade) prices saw a significant rise of INR 750/t to INR 39,450/t DAP.

Steel market

In the Mandi region, steel ingot prices rose by INR 300/t to INR 43,300/t during the price reporting and normalisation phase. On the other hand, prices in other key markets increased by INR 100/t to INR 600/t. The semi-finished steel market in the region experienced a w-o-w increase of INR 2,100/t. Rebar (Fe500) prices in Mandi increased by INR 500/t, reaching INR 48,000/t ex-works, driven by moderate trading activity on Thursday.

Overview of Alang scrap market

The Alang market in Gujarat saw a rise of INR 500/t in ship-breaking melting scrap prices on 25 September, 2024. HMS (80:20) prices were assessed at INR 34,700/t ex-yards. In yesterday's trading activity, there was a noticeable increase in the prices of semi-finished and finished steel, and growing inquiries for scrap have encouraged suppliers to raise their prices.

Price highlights

End-cutting-billets spread: In Mandi, the end-cutting scrap and billet spread was at INR 5,300/t.

Domestic vs imported scrap: Imported melting scrap prices at the Nhava Sheva Port were at $370-$375/t, which equates to approximately INR 33,577/t (including freight). Local scrap HMS (80:20) prices in Mumbai remained stable at INR 33,000/t DAP. In India, indicative prices of shredded scrap from Europe stood around $385-$390/t CFR Nhava Sheva.

Raipur sponge iron-billet spread: The current conversion spread (margin) from pellet-based DRI (P-DRI) to steel billets in Raipur stood at INR 12,750/t.

To see BigMint's melting scrap assessment, pricing methodology and specification documents, Click here