Local Indian hot rolled coil (HRC) trade prices have gained further momentum on the back of the all-round demand improvement and reports from some regions of dealers quoting extra payments for concluding immediate deliveries, indicating a continuing tightening of supplies, SteelOrbis learned from trade and industry circles on Monday, September 11.
Sources said that HRC trade prices have surged by INR 900/mt ($11/mt) to INR 57,700/mt ($696/mt) ex-Mumbai and are up INR 1000/mt ($12/mt) to INR 57,400/mt ($692/mt) ex-Chennai in the south. Besides, they said that some dealers in the southern region are heard to be quoting even higher at INR 58,500/mt ($706/mt) for immediate delivery against 100 percent advance payment, indicating low inventories in trade channels. While the supply side situation is expected to improve, as some mill under maintenance shutdowns are being brought back into production, the strong demand uptick across regions will continue to support higher prices.
“Barely a week has passed since most integrated mills completed their base price increases and there is already market chatter about another base price revision within a fortnight. The market is expecting mills to raise flat product prices by another INR 1,500/mt ($18/mt), leveraging the demand rise and the faster movement of material in the market,” a Mumbai-based trader told SteelOrbis.
“The local currency has remained very volatile against the US dollar over the past two weeks and is forecast to depreciate further, leading to new import bookings at a minimal level. This too will help local prices to continue consolidating higher,” he added.
$1 = INR 82.90
