The local Indian cold rolled coil (
CRC) market has been marked by slow activity during the past week at INR 49,500/mt ($813/mt) ex-works, with buyers showing little appetite to conclude fresh bookings, traders said on Thursday, September 18.
"Apart from the automobile sector,
CRC stocks have just not been moving in other large user segments like pipes and tubes," a Mumbai-based trader said.
"Sentiment has become negative following the slowdown of growth in manufacturing and with dealers unwilling to increase their stocks," he said.
"Furthermore, with the festive season starting next month, dealers prefer not to lock up liquidity in fresh bookings either," he added.
Market sources said that local
CRC prices are expected to move sideways in the short term in the absence of any direction either from the price side or demand.
Although the market expected local steel mills to adjust prices to keep inventories moving, the mills are not expected to make a call on a new price regime until late October or early November, the sources added.
$1 = INR 60.89