India: Silico Manganese market continues uptrend on limited availability

Silico Manganese producers are having the benefit of the increased demand in recent weeks and most major producers having limited stocks. In the past few months, the Silico Manganese market remained depressed, until last week, the prices for Silico Manganese has been increasing day by day in line with increased demand. As the steel market started improving at the start of the year, it pulled up the prices of Silico Manganese. A lot of material is out of the market due to SAIL tenders and the steel market is facing a shortage of Silico Manganese. Producers are quoting higher for immediate delivery at this moment and most of them are booked till Jan-end.

Prices have been escalating since the 1^st of Jan and currently are at INR 69,000/MT Ex Durgapur. Producers in Durgapur have started quoting INR 70,000/MT Ex-Durgapur. Meanwhile, in Raipur, the prices are stable at INR 66500-67000/MT. The producers feel that the prices may further move up as there is a shortage of supply in the steel market. In the export market, the price increased W-o-W at USD 940/MT for 60-14 grade and USD 1010/MT for 65-16 amid a strong domestic market. Due to Christmas and New year holidays, the export market remained silent and the exporters are curious about how the market functions after the holidays.

On the future outlook, the positive sentiments seem to carry forward for the next few weeks. Silico Manganese prices may increase further if imported Manganese Ore prices continue to rise.