India: Sponge iron prices fall on limited buying interest - 4 Feb

Sponge iron prices fell by INR 50-300/t in key locations of the country amid lack of buying enquiries due to weak sentiments in the spot market. This, in turn, prompted sponge suppliers in various regions to reduce offers.

About 9,800 t of sponge iron transactions were recorded today in India as against 11,460 t on 3 February.

Snapshots of key markets

• Rourkela: Trades remained below average. Market participants lacked trust in the direction of price changes. As a result, spot trading was considerably restricted. Price volatility persists and buyers are still buying as per immediate requirements.
  
  
• Raipur: The market remained sluggish, with no significant trades reported. Offers were on the lower side and buyers were bidding at very low rates, resulting in limited trading today.
  
  
• Bellary: Limited spot buying activity in sponge iron resulted in lower trade volumes d-o-d. Buyers are anticipating further correction as sales in the semi-finished and finished steel segments are low.
  
  
• Durgapur: The market remained stable throughout the day with average trade volumes recorded. Buyers are still opting out of bulk bookings and volatile trends are likely to continue for a few days.
  
  
• Ramgarh: The market remained silent with low trading activities being reported. Sellers were under pressure because of weak demand.
  
  

Rationale -

This index has been derived based on transactions, offers, bids and indicative price data sets. Transactions are considered as T1 and given a weightage of 50% whereas other data sets are considered as T2 and given a weightage of the balance 50%.

Click for detailed methodology

T1 - Trade, T2 - Offer/Bid/Indicative