The rising trend in Iran's hot dip galvanized (HDG) market has continued in the last two weeks, just like the prices of other flat and long steel products in the domestic market. With prices continuing to rise steadily, buyers tend to purchase materials today which they know will be more expensive tomorrow. This results in a rush to purchase in the market which intensifies the soaring price trend, though at the risk of creating a bubble in the market.
Local traders are currently offering 0.5-1.25 mm HDG at about $990-1,040/mt ex-stock Tehran, up from $930-1,000/mt ex-works three weeks ago and up from $900-980/mt ex-works six weeks ago. Local prices of HDG had fallen to a bottom level of $840-890/mt ex-stock Tehran in the second half of June. Subsequently, a rising trend started in July which has continued up to the present.
At present, local traders are not so interested in selling their stocks as they know that they can sell at higher prices if they delay their sales. Most privately-owned galvanizing mills in Iran have closed their sales at present in the hope of selling materials at higher prices later.
On August 30, Mobarakeh Steel sold a few batches of HDG via the Iran Mercantile Exchange (IME) at $850/mt ex-works with 83-day delivery and also at $878/mt ex-works with 113-day delivery, for cash payment. On August 9, Mobarakeh had sold HDG via the IME at $862/mt ex-works with 70-day delivery and cash payment.
Iran imported about 75,000 mt of HDG and about 71,000 mt of electro-galvanized material in the first four months of the current Iranian year (started March 21), while it had imported 47,000 mt of HDG and 56,000 mt of electro-galvanized in same period of the last Iranian year - according to the Iranian customs authorities.