Local Indian hot rolled coil (HRC) trade prices have inched lower during the past week, though some improvement in bookings has been reported in some regions, based on market expectations of mills hiking base prices in the current month, SteelOrbis learned from trade and industry circles on Monday, August 3.
Sources said that HRC trade prices are down INR 100/mt ($1/mt) to INR 56,400/mt ($591/mt) ex-Mumbai and have also lost INR 100/mt ($1/mt) to INR 57,700/mt ($605/mt) ex-Chennai in the south.
According to the sources, while buyers still remain cautious, better restocking activity has been reported from regional markets in the west and north. Mills have been pulling back volume discounts offered earlier to confirm bookings and this has been taken as a precursor to a possible base price hike by producers for the current month.
Talk of such hikes prompted some distributors to conclude fresh bookings at currently relatively lower price levels even though the overall market mood remains bearish, the sources said.
“The market outlook remains negative well beyond the current monsoon season. There are no positive drivers on the demand side. Producers are under pressure to hike prices to offset the rising cost of production,” a Mumbai-based distributor said.
“Under present market conditions, any base price increase will not be absorbed and a price correction at the trade level is a distinct possibility,” he added.
