India: Ferro silicon prices inch down as market resumes operations post-holidays

Indian ferro silicon (70%) prices fell by INR 650/t w-o-w as there was a drop in inquiries and delay in dispatches in the previous week due to festive holidays.

According to SteelMint's assessment on 17 November, Indian ferro silicon prices stood at INR 102,100/t exw-Guwahati. Few trades were finalized in the price bracket of INR 102,000-103,000/t. Bhutan's prices, on the other hand, remained stable at INR 102,300/t exw.

Market highlights

Dip in inquiries along with dispatch delays: With the festive holidays falling in the previous week, some producers informed that there was a drop in inquiries for the material. For the same reason, material dispatches were also delayed. Due to this, prices saw some fluctuations.

Global prices fall tracking Chinese futures: Ferro silicon (75%) prices in China saw a slight drop of RMB 100/t ($14/t) w-o-w to stand at RMB 7,300/t ($1,007/t) exw-Inner Mongolia. Steel mills in the northern part of China were yet to disclose their tender prices. Although the production of ferro silicon did not decrease, prices were under pressure as a result of the slowdown in demand.

Ferro silicon futures for December 2023 delivery contract on China's Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange (ZCE) also experienced a decline of RMB 30/t ($4/t) w-o-w to RMB 7,124/t ($985/t) on 17 November.

Outlook

In the upcoming days, prices might slightly fluctuate but are expected to remain within the current range.