Prices in the local Indian cold rolled coil (CRC) market have increased by INR 2,500/mt during the past week to INR 46,500/mt ($730/mt) ex-works, amid strong buying support and anticipation of base price hikes by domestic steel mills, traders said on January 2.
Market sources said that Indian steel mills are expected to announced a stiff increase in CRC base prices of around INR 2,000/mt over the next few days, prompting all-round buying support from end-users as well as fresh bookings by dealers.
“The price hike is expected to be one of the highest over the past several months,” a Mumbai-based trader said. “With any possibility of a correction of prices even at current high levels being discounted, buyers across market segments have resumed making large-volume bookings,” the trader added.
However, according to two other traders, the only uncertainty hovering over the bullish market conditions is the current appreciation of the Indian rupee which over the past week has strengthened to around INR 63.70 to the dollar and its possible impact on levels of imports in the coming week.
$1 = INR 63.69