India: Ferro silicon prices shoot up on supply disruption from Bhutan

The ferro silicon prices from Guwahati shot up as domestic producers were able to capitalize on complete stoppage in supply from Bhutan as Bhutan imposed it's first nationwide lockdown due to spread of coronavirus. However, the ferro silicon plants in Bhutan have got permission to dispatch ferro silicon this week, but labour shortage persists.

After getting permission to export, the Bhutanese producers have increased the offer levels too. The last heard offers are at INR 82,000/t from Bhutan and the prices from Guwahati are at much high levels of INR 92,000/t. At present, the Bhutanese producers are only executing previous orders that were taken before the lockdown.

Only the buyers in extremely urgent need of ferro silicon are willing to procure at such a high price, whereas, rest of the buyers are certain that the prices will fall soon as the supply situation normalizes. Meanwhile, the demand for ferro silicon is also improving with increased Stainless steel and Aluminium production.

Future Outlook:
Production in India is quite low, with only a handful of producers operating the North-eastern states of India, which is providing them with the opportunity to take advantage of the supply crunch. However, with supply from Bhutan resuming, the prices may soon fall back to normal levels.