Local Indian cold rolled coil (CRC) prices have moved up reacting to base price increases by large mills and strong bookings received by re-rollers as key user industries like industrial packaging and automotive have been restocking aggressively getting ready for the approaching ‘busy season’ of September, October and November.
Sources said that benchmark 0.9mm CRC prices have gained INR 450/mt ($5/mt) to INT 60,450/mt ($732/mt) ex-Mumbai and are up INR 500/mt ($6/mt) to INR 59,700/mt ($723/mt) ex-Chennai in the south.
They said that, even though major automobile companies recorded low single-digit sales growth in July compared to high double-digits in preceding months, the companies were readying assembly lines to increase output, expecting a strong rebound in sales during the festival months ahead. At the same time, specialized industrial packaging and structural solution providers in southern region were heard to be placing large bookings with standalone re-rollers, boosting overall trade volumes and prices.
“The Indian rupee is once again depreciating rapidly against the US dollar and is forecast to fall to levels of around INR 83 per dollar. This has tempered down interest in imports, at least among medium-volume importers with limited ability to hedge currency risks. This is also offering support to local prices,” a Mumbai-based distributor told SteelOrbis.
$1 = INR 82.60