Indian exporters of hot dip galvanized (HDG) have pruned their offer prices marginally by $10/mt during the past week to $750/mt FOB while at the same time increasing discounts to Gulf buyers, traders said on Thursday, April 5.
Sources said that, with shipments to the US market having completely dried up, Indian commercial HDG exporters are shifting their focus to Gulf Cooperation Council markets.
However, buyers in the Gulf region, anticipating a glut in finished steel and a resultant softening of prices after the imposition of tariffs by the US, have been seeking higher discounts to conclude transactions, the sources said.
While transaction volumes in the Gulf have remained moderate, exporters have upped discounts on offer to around $20/mt from $10-15/mt last month, even after lowering their base export offers, traders said. They added that transactions to the Gulf are reported in the range of $790-800/mt CFR Gulf.
“Exporting steel mills are not focusing on pushing export shipments as they are getting better margins in the domestic market,” a Mumbai-based trader said.
“Net of discount, Indian commercial HDG exporters’ margins are negligible at higher discounted offer levels. However, exporters are concluding low-volume transactions to maintain their market presence in the Gulf, having exited the US market,” the trader added.