Ex-India billet prices have been kept stable over the past week, but optimism over prices bottoming out and over the emergence of fresh buying has been belied by buyers across Asia remaining quiet or submitting low bids unviable for Indian sellers, SteelOrbis learned from trade and industry circles on Wednesday, July 2.
Sources said that, while ex-India billet prices are stable at $415-425/mt FOB and local mills were claiming a bottom has been reached, buyers across key destinations have been staying away from deals perceiving that the stability will be short-lived.
According to the sources, the situation in the Middle East has remained a concern and buyers are still averse to facing risks as regards shipping freight costs and deliveries.
“Even if the market has touched a bottom, there are very few drivers to trigger a rebound. It is not only the geopolitical situation in the Middle East that is casting a gloom on market sentiments, there is not much sales activity because the fundamental demand outlook in most key markets remains weak,” an official at an Indian mill said.
“The stability seen over the past week alone cannot be seen as a positive unless there is more trade activity, and trade activity can only come if there is demand improvement,” he added.
Meanwhile, in the local market, billet trade prices have showed a mixed trend amid very weak trading activity. Billet trade prices are up INR 300/mt ($4/mt) to INR 39,600/mt ($462/mt) ex-Mumbai, but have lost INR 150/mt) ($2/mt) to INR 36,900/mt ($431/mt) ex-Raipur in the central region.
$1 = INR 85.70