India: Ferro molybdenum prices steady; signs of price rise emerging

• Around 50 t of spot trades concluded last week
  
  
• Slight drop in LME futures prices seen
  
  

Indian ferro molybdenum prices remained largely stable, inching down slightly by INR 2,000/t ($23/t) w-o-w in comparison with the assessment on 22 January. There wasn't much of a deviation in prices as market was steady with limited movement and regular trading activities were being carried out.

Ferro molybdenum prices in India were INR 2,518,000/t ($29,082/t) exw-India, according to BigMint's assessment on 29 January. Approximately, 50 t of deals were concluded last week within the price bracket of INR 2,470,000-2,500,000/t ($28,527-28,874/t) exw.

Market recap (22-28 January 2025)

Recent rise in inquiries: A prominent seller in Maharashtra region was quoted as saying to BigMint, "Buyers are now looking for long term contracts showing positive signs in the market. Also since November 2024, when prices were at INR 2,600,000/t ($30,029/t) exw levels, prices had been gradually decreasing and seemed like they had bottomed out. So that could be another reason for stability in market as its slowly picking up pace."

Overall, prices were steady and some variations occurred mainly due to payment terms. Buyers who paid upfront or within shorter credit periods secured better rates, whereas those requiring extended credit got material at higher rates.

Costs of imported molybdenum oxide edged down marginally w-o-w to around $20.4/lb, as against $21.8/lb in the week before.

Unchanged dynamics in stainless steel segment: Stainless steel prices for 316 grade HRC inched down by INR 1,000/t ($12/t) w-o-w to INR 321,000/t ($3,708/t) exw-Mumbai. Not much of an improvement was seen last week as demand and need based buying continued to surround this sector. Market participants are mainly looking forward to the upcoming Union Budget if any infrastructure projects could boost the demand.

Global trends: China's market stayed silent with holidays approaching. Market was steady there as majority of the steel mills had sufficient stocks of ferro molybdenum lying with them.

Some activities were seen mainly in European and Asian market keeping prices steady in other regions as well. On the London Metal Exchange (LME) platform, prices went down slightly by $0.56/lb w-o-w to $20.33/lb on 28 January.

Outlook

Since ferro molybdenum is a commodity with high unit value, small fluctuations are usually not considered significant and are seen as normal market stability. So with the current stability in market, prices are also expected to stay within current range.