Activity in the import hot rolled coil (HRC) market in India has increased somewhat over the past week with a sizable volume, mainly originating from Vietnam and Japan, traded at more competitive prices than compared to local offers.
More specifically, following the approval by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) of Vietnamese steelmaker Formosa Ha Tinh (FHS) last month, imports of HRC have continued to flood the Indian market this month. SteelOrbis has learned that the Vietnamese producer is reported to have booked at least 100,000 mt of HRC for export to India at $560-565/mt CFR, against deal prices at $580-583/mt CFR reported last month. “The volumes are big. Some sources even say that India booked 140,000 mt from Vietnam,” an Indian trader said, adding, “Formosa’s quantities are going mainly to local traders in India, while HRC from Japan and South Korea are booked by mills directly.”
According to sources, around 30,000-35,000/mt of ex-Japan HRC have been booked at $560/mt CFR this week.
Meanwhile, offers for ex-China HRC have been estimated at $540/mt CFR, excluding 7.5 percent duty and, according to market insiders, no interest in Chinese materials has been seen among Indian buyers.
This week, local Indian HRC trade prices have lost INR 200/mt ($2/mt) to INR 52,200/mt ($625/mt) ex-Mumbai and are down INR 1,000/mt ($12/mt) to INR 53,000/mt ($634/mt) ex-Chennai in the south.
