Ex-China flat steel product import prices to India have continued to soften during the past week triggering a further rise in number of deals concluded and volumes, traders said on Wednesday, December 5.
“The steady lowering of import offers has made imported flat steel products very cost-competitive vis-à-vis domestic material even after domestic steel mills lowered base prices for local sales,” a Mumbai-based trader said. “While the number of deals for ex-China flat products has risen, the focus during the week has been on the significant increase in contracts and volumes for ex-Japan flat steel products, particularly for hot rolled coil (HRC) imports by commercial traders,” he added.
Ex-China HRC offers have declined significantly during the past week by $45/mt to $520/mt CFR Mumbai, according to market sources. The sources said that contracts for close to an aggregate volume of an estimated 20,000 mt have been concluded by importing traders for January delivery.
However, more significantly, buying interest for ex-Japan HRC shot up sharply among importing traders with contracts for an estimated 25,000-30,000 mt being concluded since the price differential with ex-China HRC was not more than 15 percent on an average on CFR basis, the sources said.
According to market sources, ex-China CRC offers have decreased by $30/mt to $575/mt CFR Mumbai in the past week. The sources said that both commercial traders and large steel mills have reportedly been active in concluding contracts, with aggregate volumes estimated by the market at around 30,000-35,000 mt.
Large steel mills were reportedly making bookings to meet the surge in demand for imported CRC by some auto manufacturers, the sources added.
Plate offers to India
Ex-China plate offers have softened by $20/mt week on week to $520/mt CFR Mumbai, but no contracts have been reported in the market by either commercial importers or large steel mills, traders said.