Ex-India hot dip galvanized (HDG) prices have been kept stable over the past week and, even though trade activity has remained negligible, some unconfirmed discounted deals in the Gulf region have kept hopes alive, SteelOrbis learned from trade and industry circles on Thursday, September 18.
Sources said that ex-India HDG (Z120) prices have remained unchanged in the range of $685-700/mt (FOB), though market chatter suggests a few low-volume deals were concluded at a discount in the Middle East.
More specifically, talk about a deal from an eastern India-based mill concluded for delivery to Qatar of 8,000 mt at $675/mt FOB net of discount has been circulating in the market but no confirmation was available from the seller. Besides, a similar discounted deal for 12,000 mt was heard in the market to have been done by an integrated mill at $660/mt FOB for delivery to the UAE, but it was also not confirmed by the seller.
“Buyers in the Gulf have been looking for non-Chinese materials over the past week for various reasons. But we are not sure whether Indian mills have been able to take advantage of the development. We do not give much weightage to reports of discounted sales over the past week in the region because for us the prices are too low,” an affiliate of Tata Steel Limited told SteelOrbis.
“The possible sales last week are unlikely to set a trend or indicate a rebound in demand. It will not change how local mills allocate volumes for overseas sales for the next quarter,” he added.