Indian export offers for high grade iron ore fines (Fe content of 63 percent and above) recorded marginal gains of $1-2/mt to levels of $155-157/mt CFR China in inactive market conditions, traders said on Friday, February 15.
"Hardly any volumes have been transacted during the week since traders representing Chinese steel mills are just getting back to work after the Chinese New Year holiday," an Orissa-based trader said.
"The marginally higher offers are being quoted by miner-exporters in anticipation that restocking by steel mills in China will gain momentum going by indications before the holidays," the trader said.
Market sources said that reports indicate that Chinese traders are not buying as aggressively as before after returning from their holidays, and this has resulted in uncertainty among Indian miner-exporters.
However, even with the revival of restocking in China, the upside room for Indian offers will be limited to a few dollars per ton since current prices are high and Chinese mills are not looking to India for high volume purchases given problems of availability of high grade ore in India.