The local Indian rebar market has followed a definite downtrend with prices losing ground amid a combination of multiple negatives including political uncertainties over state-level elections and the resultant slowdown in retail sales, fears of government spending on large projects easing up as the financial year nears its end, and induction furnace operators continuing to push higher volumes into the market to sustain cash flows, SteelOrbis learned from trade and industry circles on Tuesday, November 28.
Indian rebar trade prices have lost INR 500/mt ($6/mt) to INR 48,700/mt ($585/mt) ex-Mumbai and are down INR 200/mt ($2/mt) to INR 48,800/mt ($586/mt) ex-Chennai in the south.
Rebar trade prices are down INR 300/mt ($4/mt) to INR 44,300/mt ($532/mt) ex-Raipur and have lost INR 1,000/mt ($12/mt) to INR 43,200/mt ($519/mt) ex-Durgapur in the east.
“State-level elections and the resultant inactivity by local government authorities in regions where polls are being held has resulted in a sharp fall in movement of stocks at the retail level. Small urban and rural project work has all come to a halt and contractors are not lifting raw materials,” a Kolkata-based distributor said.
“Apprehensions are emerging of a slowdown in the pace of construction of large projects as government budgets get strained as the end of the fiscal year approaches. Hence, large engineering, procurement, construction (EPC) companies are cautious in participating in the tender-based sales of large integrated steel mills,” he said.
According to an induction furnace operator in the eastern state of West Bengal, “Input costs are rising at a time when increasing price is not an option. Hence, producers are aggressively pushing higher volume sales in the market to generate higher cash flows to meet costs.”
$1 = INR 83.30
