Ex-India hot dip galvanized (HDG) coil prices have remained largely stable across a wide range amid very subdued trading activity. Buyers in the Middle East submitted bids that were too low to conclude workable deals, while a few small-volume transactions are reported to have been done in Europe, although market sentiments have remained cautious, SteelOrbis learned from trade and industry sources on Thursday, April 24.
Sources said that ex-India HDG (grade Z120) is quoted by large local mills in the range of $680-700/mt FOB for Middle East markets, the same as last week, while offers for European customers have been estimated at around $725/mt FOB and above, down by $5/mt week on week.
According to the sources, a deal for around 5,000 mt is speculated to have been concluded by an eastern India-based large mill at $720/mt FOB, or around d $775/mt CFR for delivery to Italy, which is lower than the $730-735/mt FOB offers submitted by sellers to Europe a week ago. But no confirmation of the sale is available by the time of publication, trade circles said. At the same time, this week ex-India HDG offers to Europe have been reported at $780-820/mt CFR, which translates to around $725-760/mt FOB, depending on the specification of the material.
Notably, market insiders have also reported that buying interest was rather “alive” in Qatar and Bahrain, but the prices sought were too low and local sellers were unwilling to push volumes at discounts ranging at around $20-30/mt on FOB basis.
“Indian mills are adjusting prices but very conservatively. This is not sufficient to drive sales in the Middle East where buyers have multiple sourcing options to meet limited demand,” a source at ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel Limited told SteelOrbis.
“Also, local sellers are not very aggressive on overseas sales as most have kept export allocations for the current quarter at lower levels in anticipation of a slowdown in exports,” another source said.
