Local Indian cold rolled coil (CRC) prices have remained stable during the past week at INR 41,000/mt ($612/mt) ex-works, amid sustained restocking by dealers, traders said on Tuesday, May 17.
"CRC prices are seen to be consolidating at higher levels as dealers have continued to restock in anticipation of a further hike in base prices by local steel mills," a Mumbai-based trader said.
"The healthy transaction volumes also indicate that there are minimum downside risks and that dealers are not too concerned regarding possible inventory buildups," he added.
Market sources said that reports indicate that local steel mills are considering a second price increase during the current month, which could be around INR 500/mt ($7/mt), prompting aggressive restocking by dealers.
$1 = INR 66.96