India: Regular trades keep ferro silicon prices stable w-o-w

Indian ferro silicon (70%) prices remained stable w-o-w with a marginal drop of INR 250/tonne (t) w-o-w. As regular trading activities continued in the market, prices stayed stable, supported by sustained demand.

As per SteelMint's assessment on 10 November, Indian ferro silicon prices stood at INR 102,750/t exw-Guwahati. Around 1,500 t of trades were finalized at INR 103,000/t. Prices in Bhutan fell by INR 700/t on w-o-w basis to stand at INR 102,300/t exw. Approximately, 700 t of trades in the INR 101,000-103,000/t price range were concluded in Bhutan.

Market overview

Stable demand supported by regular trades: Majority of the producers in Guwahati and Bhutan started new bookings from November. There were some fluctuations later on though as some offered discounts on bulk orders. Overall, prices remained consistent compared to the initial offers of the month.

Global context: Ferro silicon (75%) prices in China also stayed stable at RMB 7,400/t ($1,015/t) exw-Inner Mongolia. Market participants adopted a cautious approach and producers were manufacturing material on demand basis.

However, ferro silicon futures for December 2023 delivery contract on China's Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange (ZCE) saw a w-o-w increase of RMB 64/t ($9/t) to RMB 7,154/t ($981/t) on 10 November.

In Japan, buyers had sufficient inventories which kept the demand lower. Some spot tenders were floated for necessary procurement. Additionally, buyers in Japan make material purchases on a quarterly basis, so there might be improvement in demand for this quarter.

Outlook

In the upcoming days, prices are expected to stay range-bound, as the market may experience a slowdown due to the ongoing festive season.