Indian Steel Market Highlights, Week 42

In Week-42 (09-15 Oct'17), Indian Iron & Steel market remain quite uncertain as trade activities were sluggish and silence over upcoming festive week.

During the week, Semis & Long steel market registered price corrections of INR 400-800/MT (USD 6-12) by medium & small scale manufacturers. Similarly, Flat Steel offers also decline around INR 500/MT (USD 8) owing to slowdown trade activities.

Raw Material: Odisha based major merchant miners continue to hold iron ore offers firm. Most of the market sources highlighted that there are less chances of price revision in the coming days owing to upcoming festive holidays.

Indian domestic Pellet offers have weakened further this week amid limited trades. Indian pellet offers have come down by INR 100-500/MT W-o-W.

Jindal SAW has further reduced offers by INR 250/MT W-o-W. Offers for Fe 63% pellets are at INR 6,500/MT, delivered Kandla.

Indian pellet export prices drop on recent export deal concluded last week by a private pellet maker. And the price assessment of pellet export are at USD 114/MT, CNF India & USD 119/MT CNF China.

Imported scrap offers to India raised this week for Shredded and HMS by USD 10-15/MT W-o-W, Few thin trades for Shredded scrap booked at USD 320/MT levels after a long wait by importers but bulk bookings are still subdued. As per assessment offers for HMS 1&2 (80:20) stood at USD 300-305/MT & for Shredded for both UK and Europe origins assessed in the range of USD 320-330/MT, CFR Nhava Sheva. Buying activities yet to pick up as expected, although despite thin trades offers showing upward trends this week.

Coking Coal: In line with market expectations, Coking Coal spot prices have moved further southwards due to softening of demand. With the imminence of 50% steel production cut from mid-Nov'17 to mid-Mar'18 in China, steel makers there have been forced to reduce Coking Coal imports. Thus, sellers in Australia-- the prime market for the coal - forced to bring down their spot prices to encourage buying. The latest price for the Premium HCC is at around USD 182.25/MT FoB Australia. Speculation on further downside in Coking Coal prices run rife.

Semis Finished Steel: On weekly basis, domestic sponge & billet prices decline by INR 200-500/MT due to low buying interest by re-rollers end.

- Recently, Vizag Steel, has floated a tender for export of 15,000 MT Billets (90*90 MM) & 30,000 MT Blooms (150*150 MM) for ocean markets & also invited a tender for export of 5,504 MT billet (IS 2830 grade) to Nepal. The last tender by the company for Nepal got cancelled due to low bid prices.

- India billet exports offer gain by USD 15/MT W-o-W & assessed at USD 490-500/MT FoB India for 5SP grade. However, the Last deal from India was concluded close to USD 500/MT, FOB India by JSW Steel in the second week of October 2017.

In the week, the private pig iron manufacturers in Central & East India further lower their offers around INR 500/MT (USD 8).

- India's largest merchant steel grade pig iron manufacturer, Neelachal Ispat (NINL) has not floated any fresh domestic offer and export tender for pig iron due to maintenance work in blast furnace.

- RSP (Rourkela Steel Plant) tender held on 11th Oct to sell about 6,000 MT steel grade material have received poor response. According to market participants, the company was able to sell only 1,000 MT pig iron and the remaining material is unsold.

Finish Steel: During the week, domestic rebar, structure & wire offers further decline as re-rollers continue to poised with poor off take and low inquiries.

- Vizag Steel's export tender for 11,008 MT (equivalent to 3 rakes) wire rod for Nepal, which expired on 3rd Oct'17 has received weak response. As per the sources only a rake of wire rod export deal has been concluded at around USD 520-525/MT (ex-mill) and the rest of material remain unsold.

- It the recent notification (dated 9th Oct) issued by Indian government, anti dumping duty has been made permanent for a period of five years on imports of Chinese wire rod (HS code 7213 & 7227).

Flat Steel Market: In the week, Indian Flat steel offers fall by INR 500/MT owing to slowdown buying activities in the traders market.

On the other hand Domestic Galvanized plain (GP) coil prices in India remain majorly stable this week. Sluggish demand and lesser bookings has resulted to reduction of GP prices in traders market.

As per SteelMint assessment, reference prices of GP (120 GSM) 0.8mm for this week are hovering in the range of INR 51,000-53,500/MT (ex-Mumbai), INR 53,000/MT (ex-Chennai),INR 50,500/MT(ex-Delhi) and INR 51,000-55,000/MT( ex-Hyderabad). The prices mentioned above are basic excluding GST @ 18%.

Indian Raw material and Finished Steel reference Prices as on 14 Oct (Week 42)

Prices are Ex-works, Exclusive of GST at 18%

Indian Export Reference Prices

Source: SteelMint Research