India: Ferro silicon prices fall by INR 4,500/t w-o-w as market adapts to Bhutan's Dec offers

• Bhutan's Dec offers drop $71/t m-o-m
  
  
• China's domestic prices hold steady
  
  

Indian ferro silicon (70%) prices fell by INR 4,500/tonne (t) ($53/t) w-o-w to INR 104,200/t as per BigMint's assessment on 2 December. Prices dropped amid lower monthly offers from Bhutan, which declined by INR 5,400/t ($64/t) w-o-w to INR 104,000/t ($1,227/t) exw.

Deals of around 150 t were recorded by BigMint in both India and Bhutan within the price range of INR 104,000-104,600/t ($1,227-1,234/t) exw.

Market insights

Bhutan's monthly offers impact India: Generally, Bhutanese players announce their offers at the beginning of each month, and producers in India, majorly from the northeastern region, follow those prices.

In December, Bhutan's offers plunged by INR 6,000/t ($71/t) m-o-m and INR 5,400/t ($64/t) w-o-w. This prompted a sharp drop in India's prices.

Last month, buyers seemed reluctant to accept the higher offers quoted, which might have resulted in December's lower prices. "Selling rates were lower last month. Hence, there was a drop in offers," a Bhutanese producer informed BigMint.

The export market was muted this week, with no inquiries.

China's prices remain stable: Ferro silicon (Si:75%) prices in China were steady, with a slight drop of RMB 50/t ($7/t) w-o-w to RMB 6,500/t ($892/t) exw-Inner Mongolia. While there were frequent inquiries, the actual transacted volume was relatively moderate. Need-based procurement was observed, as most downstream buyers adopted a cautious approach.

However, ferro silicon futures for January 2025 delivery on the Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange (ZCE) witnessed an uptick of RMB 86/t ($12/t) w-o-w to RMB 6,438/t ($884/t) on 2 December.

Outlook

In the upcoming days, prices are expected to hold steady, given that Bhutan's December offers have just been announced, and Indian sellers have started offering material at those levels.