Ex-India hot rolled coil (HRC) prices have remained stable but large mills have continued to refrain from submitting offers amid the softening of prices in Asian destinations while, even though some buyers in the Middle East are back in the market, bids have failed to result in transactions.
Sources said that ex-India HRC prices have been maintained at $560-610/mt FOB, with the higher end of the range corresponding to offers to Europe at around $665/mt CFR, the same as last week, while the lower end of the range corresponds to indicative offers in Asia and the Middle East. However, according to sources, this week Asian buyers have remained absent, anticipating that the softening of prices in the region will gather momentum. Also, buyers from the Middle East have been showing some interest, but the bids they submitted were $10-20/mt lower and were unworkable for Indian mills.
“Buyers in Southeast Asia are taking their cue from weakening ex-China prices and deferring deals, anticipating offers will soften further. Indian mills, like in the previous month, are largely continuing to remain out of the Asian market,” a source at Tata Steel told SteelOrbis.
“Global prices will likely remain weak. Indian mills will need to continue to effectively serve domestic customers to offset the lack of overseas sales,” another source said.
