Indian billet exports have remained largely at a standstill due to year-end considerations, barring stray tender-based sales at prices below expectations, while the outlook for a revival in the New Year has been dampened by reports of a slide in billet prices in China, SteelOrbis has learned from trade and industry circles.
Prices for ex-India billet have remained at $580-590/mt FOB for standard 150 mm 3SP/4SP material, which reflects the current tradable level, but there have been no confirmed deals over the past week.
The tradable level for billet in China has decreased again, to $610/mt CFR at a maximum this week, which is too low for Indian sellers, considering at least $50/mt freight.
According to the sources, only government-run Indian mills have been offering relatively lower volumes through tenders, but the highest bids were significantly lower than expectations and trades earlier in the month.
Market intermediaries said that an export tender for 20,000 mt billet of 90 mm billet from a government mill received a highest bid of $550-560/mt FOB. Though not completely comparable, a higher tonnage of 150 mm billet by the same mill had received a highest bid of $580-584/mt FOB a week ago, the sources said.
“The previous optimism over a revival in billet exports stemming from reports of a 14-month peak in billet imports into China in November and sustained inward shipments has been dampened somewhat by the slide in domestic billet prices in China. With market activity almost at a standstill, it is a challenge to assess the short-term outlook,” a source at a state-run mill, Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL), said.
“Sellers will wait for business activity to resume after the holidays to assess the new price trend in China and for mills to determine their export allocations for the next quarter,” the sources said.
Meanwhile, in the local market in India, billet prices have edged up marginally by INR 300/mt ($4/mt) to INR 43,150-43,400/mt ($575-579/mt) ex-works amid an improved volume offtake riding on the back of higher rebar prices.
$1 = INR 75.00
