Indian hot dipped galvanized (HDG) exporters have maintained their prices high and some have even decided to go higher even though trade volumes remained muted but sellers positioned themselves for post-holiday rebound in demand and prices.
Sources said that ex-India HDG price was pushed up in range of $825-850/mt FOB, compared to levels of $815-845/mt FOB a week ago. They said that even though there were no sufficient export allocations available with mills in December, higher offers were being submitted since deals would materialize with a lag which would coincide post-holiday period during which EU market would be settling in at a higher level with local mills having concluded effecting increase in price.
According to market insiders, India-based mills reported a few bookings for around 15,000 mt in total of HDG at around $900-905/mt CFR for Europe delivery in February-March.
“Prices have increased in Europe and there is strong interest in restocking imports. But most of this is so far restricted to distribution channels. We expect end use demand to rebound in the New Year. This will be an advantage of Indian mills with large export allocations available for the last quarter,” a source in ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel Limited told SteelOrbis.
