Weekly round-up: Semi-finished steel prices edge up on active uptick in steel demand.

Domestic induction furnace finished long steel offers witnessed a upward trend in prices. Prices rose by INR 200-950/t. The trade reference prices for hot rolled coil (HRC) and cold rolled coils (CRC) remained stable this week in the major markets.

• BigMint's bi-weekly domestic pellet (Fe 63%) index, PELLEX, dropped by INR 150/t w-o-w at INR 9,150/tonne (t) DAP Raipur on 8 March. Total deals of 40,000 t were recorded at INR 9,150-9,250/t DAP Raipur from the Raipur region in the last one week. The pellet makers in Raipur witnessed active deals this week after drop in the offers. Subdued export offers which created pressure followed by a drop in domestic demand forced Raipur pellet makers to cut offers.
  
  
• Asia-Pacific Supramax dry bulk (50,000-55,000 t) freight rates for an iron ore vessel from the east coast of India to China were recorded at $14.5/tonne (t) on 6 March, 2024, according to BigMint's assessment. Dry bulk iron ore freight rates emerged stronger this week. The demand for iron ore surged as Chinese buyers are active in the global market. Significantly, the major miners are back in action; enquiries for large vessels have increased. In addition, bunker prices have edged up resulting in limited exchanges.
  
  
• BigMint's India pellet (Fe 63%, 3% Al) export index (FOB east coast) decreased by $3/tonne (t) to $105/t on 6 March 2024. No deals were recorded from the east coast of India in this publishing window. For another time in about six months, the pellet export index has hit a six-month low. The last time such levels were reached was in August 2023. The pellet export market has been performing rather poorly over the last few days, on the back of lower bids from buyers along with weak demand in the seaborne market. A wide gap between bids and offers was seen.
  
  
• BigMint's weekly Indian low-grade iron ore fines (Fe 57%) export index remained stable w-o-w at $74/t FOB east coast on 7 March 2024. A deal of 100,000 t iron ore fines (Fe57%) was concluded at $89/t CFR China in the early days of this week. The iron ore fines export market performed better than raw pellet as inquiries were received from the buyers at a discount on the index. However, only a few deals were concluded this week due to lower feasible prices for the traders and miners.
  
  

Coal

• Australian premium hard coking coal prices dropped by 3% w-o-w to $304/t FOB and $322/ t CNF on 9 Mar'24 amid ample availability of material.
  
  
• RB1 (6000 NAR) grade prices remained stable w-o-w to $98/t FOB. Similarly, RB3 remained unchanged at $66/t FOB Richards Bay, South Africa.
  
  
• Portside prices of South African RB3 (4800 NAR) thermal coal at Vizag Port recorded at INR 7,900/t, rose by INR 200/t.
  
  

Ferros Scrap

• In India, market activities slowed down over the week due to discrepancies in prices between domestic and imported scrap, compounded by expectations of further drops in offers due to the ongoing decline in Turkish prices. Additionally, buyers exhibited heightened interest in materials arriving in March and April at lower offers, particularly from non-European origins. Shredded scrap offers from UK/Europe saw a weekly average decrease of $9/t to $406/t CFR compared to last week's $415/t CFR, while HMS (80:20) offers also decreased by $9/t w-o-w to $382/t CFR.
  
  
• A representative from a trading company remarked, "The market is currently experiencing a quiet period. We anticipate an improvement in buying activity towards the end of March. With nearly a $20 gap between domestic and imported scrap prices, offering at this juncture seems futile."
  
  

Ferro Alloys

• Silico Manganese: Indian silico manganese prices fell by INR 350/t ($4/t, prices hovered at a one-month low, as per BigMint data. On 8 March, silico manganese (60-14) was trading at around INR 66,500-67,000/t ($804-$810/t) exw Durgapur, Raipur, and Vizag.
  
  
• Ferro Manganese: Ferro manganese (HC70%) prices dropped by INR 1,125/t ($14/t) as the domestic and overseas demand squeezed. Ferro manganese prices in Raipur and Durgapur on 8 March were at INR 66,700/t ($806/t).
  
  
• Ferro Silicon: As of 8 March, BigMint reported ferro silicon prices in India at INR 103,000/t ($1,245/t), down INR 1,600/t ($19/t) exw-Guwahati and INR 103,000/t ($1,245/t) exw-Bhutan, decreased by INR 1,800/t ($22/t). Prices fell as Bhutan cuts it's prices on weak demand.
  
  
• Ferro Chrome: On 8 March, Indian ferro chrome (HC 60%, Si:4%) prices tailed off by INR 2,200/t ($27/t), reaching INR 119,500/t ($1,444/t) exw-Jajpur. Prices dropped as buyers were still skeptical about higher offers.
  
  

Semi-Finished

• Indian semi-finished steel prices increases as per BiglMint's assessment. Domestic billet prices increased by INR 200-950/t in all key regions, with a major increase of INR 950/t seen in the central region (Raipur and Raigarh market). Similarly, sponge iron prices in almost all key locations also increased by INR 50-800/t, with a major increase of INR 800/t seen in the Durgapur and Ramgarh markets. However, sponge iron prices only in Bellary fell by INR 50-100/t.
  
  
• SAIL-Bhilai Steel Plant (BSP) held an auction for 11,950 t of steel-grade pig iron on 7 March'24. According to sources, the entire quantity was booked at an average price of INR 36,300/t exw.
  
  
• SAIL-Rourkela Steel Plant held an auction for 4,500 t of steel-grade pig iron on 7 March'24. The entire quantity was booked at an average price of INR 36,800/t exw.
  
  
• NMDC's steel plant in Nagarnar, Chhattisgarh, conducted a steel-grade pig iron auction for a total of 60,000 t on 6 Mar'24. The whole quantity was booked at an average price of INR 35,300/t.
  
  
• SAIL's Durgapur Steel Plant held an auction for 2,000 t of steel-grade pig iron on 5 March'24. The total quantity was booked at an average price of INR 37,650/t exw.
  
  
• Indian DRI (Direct Reduced Iron) export offers increased by approximately $2-6/t, reaching $356/t on CPT Raxaul, and $364/t on CPT Benapole.
  
  

Finished-long steel

• Finished Long Steel (IF Route):India's induction furnace route finished long steel prices witnessed uptick w-o-w in across the locations. The trading activities were moderate as buyers became active and booked sufficient material. Sellers also reported reduced inventory pressure amid improved market scenario. A similar movement in sponge iron and steel billet further led to the ongoing trend. By seeing ongoing trend, prices in the market are likely to remain range-bound in the near term as mills observed appropriate booking orders due to which they might maintain the current price range.
  
  
• On a weekly basis, in rebar steel prices increased by upto INR 1,200/t across the regions except few markets stable as noticed as per BigMint assessment shows.
  
  
• The trade reference price of Fe 500 grade rebar manufactured via the IF route for 10-25 mm size was assessed at INR 43,700-44,100/t exw Raipur, INR 49,000-49,500/t exw Jalna.
  
  
• Trade reference price of heavy structural steel for base size 150mm channel stands at INR 45,300-45,700/t exw Raipur.
  
  
• Trade reference prices of wire rod hovering at INR 43,900-44,400/t ex Raipur.
  
  
• BF-rebar:Indian tier-1 mills have rolled over rebar list prices m-o-m for early-March 2024 deliveries. Current list prices are hovering around INR 52,000-53,000/t on landed basis.
  
  
• Trade-level prices of blast furnace (BF) rebars rose slightly w-o-w across markets following improvement in IF rebar trades during the week. Meanwhile, lacklusture demand continued to weigh on the market sentiments. Current week's rebar prices (12-32mm, Fe500D) in the trade segment rose by INR 300/t w-o-w to INR 51,900/t exy-Mumbai. Prices are exclusive of GST at 18%.
  
  

Finished flate steel

• • Indian primary flat steel producers are considering rollover their HRC and CRC list prices for March 2024 sales from end-February 2024 listprices as confirmed by market participants. However, the same couldnot be confirmed from mill's end. Expected list prices for HRC (IS2062, Gr E250, 2.5-8mm) are INR 54,500-56,000/t exy-Mumbai, and CRC (IS513, Gr-O, 0.9mm) around 59,000-62,000/t exy-Mumbai. Distributors seek clarity on February 2024 price support.
    
    
  • In trade market HR coil prices declined slightly; HRC (IS2062, Gr E250, 2.5-8mm) at INR 53,100/t, and CRC (IS513, Gr O, 0.9mm) at INR 61,300/t on 5 March 2024. These prices are quoted ex-Mumbai, excluding 18% GST, and are for cut-to-length (CTL) deliveries.
    
    
  • BigMint's India HRC (SAE 1006) export index for the Middle East and Vietnam decreased week-on-week to $593/t FOB, compared to $596/t FOB on the east coast of India. Export offers to these regions declined by $5/t, impacting the overall index. Indian HRC export offers to the Middle East dropped slightly to $620-625/t CFR, down from $625-630/t CFR, with a major steel player securing 20,000 tonnes at $625/t CFR UAE for March 2024 shipment. Meanwhile, HRC export prices to Europe (S275, 3mm) fell approximately $15/t week-on-week to $665-675/t CFR Antwerp, reflecting recent deals, including 10,000 tonnes at $675/t CFR Antwerp and 15,000-20,000 tonnes at $665/t CFR Italy for April shipments.
    
    
  • Bulk HRC and plates export volumes rose to 6,42,422 t in February 2024, 40% m-o-m higher than 4,58,120 t in January 2024, as per the vessel line-up data maintained with BigMint. In the first week of March 2024 plates exports were at 2,16,438 t.