India: Silicomanganese prices fall by INR 2,000/t w-o-w on slow demand

A slack in demand by the steel manufacturers has triggered a slide in Indian silicomanganese prices.

Prices in Raipur are at INR 67,000-67,500/t Ex-plant and in Durgapur, the prices are at INR 67,500-68,000/t Ex-plant. However, buyers are expecting the prices to slide further and are delaying purchases.

Meanwhile, in the exports market, the situation is not very promising and the prices are falling further owing to slow demand. Currently, the prices are hovering at $940-950/t for 60-14 grade and $1,040-1,050/t for 65-16 grade. However, producers believe that the prices might be stable in the exports market owing to the increasing cost of imported manganese ore.

Outlook:
Indian producers are waiting for MOIL to release their prices, which is expected to be higher by 5-10% owing to the increase in global prices. However, even if the prices of domestic ores increase, there might be a spike in alloy prices, which might not sustain for long. Meanwhile, the prices of silicomanganese are expected to go through further corrections this week.