India’s flat steel imports have continued to remain at their lowest levels in recent times and even further drop in offers has failed to trigger buying interest. A renewed move by the local steel industry to push for import safeguard duties has also pushed down market activity, traders said on Thursday, September 26.
According to market sources, ex-China hot rolled coil (HRC) offers are down $10/mt to $460-465/mt CFR Mumbai, with reports among local traders indicating that volume discounts ranging around 10 percent have also been pushed. The sources said that ex-China cold rolled coil (CRC) offers have also softened $10/mt to $495-500/mt CFR Mumbai.
“With the festival holidays approaching next month and a demand revival elusive, end-users are unwilling to restock raw materials and hence the negligible import activity,” a Mumbai-based trader said.
“Also, import sentiments have been affected by reports that domestic steel mills led by JSW Limited have once again renewed petitioning of the government for imposition of 25 percent safeguard duty on steel imports. Even though the last time round the government did not give ground, a large section of the market felt that the government could be more amenable to the demand this time around. Hence, no importer is willing to risk making import deals and getting caught with a heavy safeguard duty at the time of delivery,” the trader added.
Market sources said that an aggregate volume of not more than around 3,000 mt has been booked by traders for ex-China HRC for end-October deliveries, but these are mostly for re-export to neighboring Nepal to meet the traders’ long-term supply agreements.