Ex-India hot rolled coil (HRC) prices have remained relatively stable over the past week. While trading activity in the EU has largely come to a standstill due to the holiday season, Indian suppliers have managed to secure sizable sales volumes in Vietnam, offering the most competitive prices among all foreign suppliers in the market. This has been further supported by the disappearance of cheap Chinese non-VAT offers due to export licensing requirements, which has strengthened the position of Indian material in Vietnam.
More specifically, ex-India HRC prices have remained at $465-470/mt FOB in the Middle East, which translates to around $490-495/mt CFR UAE. Following a deal for around 30,000 mt of ex-India HRC in the UAE at $485/mt CFR last week, this week sources reported that at least one large eastern Indian mill has been engaged in active negotiations over the past week for the delivery of 20,000 mt of HRC to the UAE at an offered price of $470-480/mt FOB. However, no deal has been confirmed, with the seller declining to disclose whether the negotiations had been called off or would resume after the year-end holidays.
Meanwhile, while offers for ex-India HRC in Vietnam have remained at $480/mt CFR level, which translated to around $460/mt FOB, several deals have been reportedly signed for Indian HRC this week at the most competitive prices among all foreign suppliers in the market. In particular, a deal for around 30,000 mt of ex-India SS400 and SAE1006 HRC has been signed at $480-482/mt CFR, for late January - February shipment. Besides, another vessel for around 30,000 mt of ex-India SAE1006 HRC has been booked at slightly below $480/mt CFR or around $477/mt CFR, according to sources. Furthermore, market insiders have been discussing another deal for another vessel at the same price level, though this information has not been confirmed by the time of publication.
It is worth mentioning that ex-India HRC deal prices for re-rolling grade have been the most competitive in Vietnam, where offers for SAE1006 HRC from other Asian suppliers like those from Indonesia, South Korea and Japan have been voiced at $485-505/mt CFR, depending on the supplier. According to sources, new bids for ex-India HRC in Vietnam have already been voiced at around $470-475/mt CFR level.
Indicative offers from India in Europe have remained at $520-525/mt FOB, mainly the same as last week, though trade has been on halt due to holiday season in the region.
“Most overseas market remained quiet and import interest has been minimal for different reasons. Europe is waiting for business activity to resume in January with new trend emerging. Demand in Middle East is weak with buyers only inclined to conclude deals at lower levels,” an affiliate of Tata Steel Limited told SteelOrbis.
As a result, the SteelOrbis reference price for ex-India SAE1006 HRC stands at $455-520/mt FOB, with the lower end of the range corresponding to offers in Vietnam, while the higher end to indicative offers in Europe.
