Ex-India billet offer prices are at $510-520/mt FOB and, though trade has remained inactive, a few mills have reported a rise in the number of inquiries, indicating that buying at these levels may surface in the coming weeks, SteelOrbis has learned from trade and industry circles.
The sources said that inquiries were being received from West Asia, but local integrated mills have not been pushing for deals as most do not have sufficient exportable inventories to meet buyers’ delivery timelines.
The SteelOrbis reference price has increased by $5/mt on the higher end of the range over the past week to $505-520/mt FOB.
The integrated mills have all been increasing long product output in view of tight supplies and high prices in the local market, and the higher captive conversion has left very small billet volumes as an exportable surplus.
Government-run mills, after a long pause, are heard to be returning with export offers, while private mills are awaiting a further consolidation of prices in key destinations before submitting spot offers.
“The number of buyers active in the local market has improved in tandem with the mood in China. But bids are still on the lower side of the range and private mills are waiting for them to stabilize at the higher end of $520/mt FOB before pressing for a deal,” a source at one Indian mill said.
“Our assessment is that it will soon be difficult for buyers in Asia to secure deals at $505-510/mt FOB. Another gain of around $5-10/mt would be the trigger for Indian exporters to move into the market with offers,” he said.
“There is very little business prudence in pushing sales overseas at low prices when local prices are looking good and improving. Sellers do not have many volumes of semis available and hence are under no pressure to consider low bids,” a source at Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) said.
Meanwhile, in the local market merchant billet trade prices have remained at INR 47,000/mt ($566/mt) ex-Mumbai and at INR 45,100/mt ($543/mt) ex-Raipur in the central region amid scarcer trading as there are minimal supplies from integrated mills.
$1 = INR 83.00