Local Indian rebar prices have shown divergent trends across regional markets with prices softening in the west and east, while edging up marginally in the south largely attributed to heavy unseasonal rains and localized floods impacting construction activities, SteelOrbis has learned from trade and industry circles.
Even within regional markets, rebar prices of induction furnaces have shown wide variations owing to the varied impact of the energy crisis on individual mills, sources said.
Rebar prices of secondary mills have softened by around INR 300/mt ($4/mt) to levels of INR 51,400-53,200/mt ($683-707/mt) ex-Mumbai. However, in the southern region, prices have gained marginally by INR 400/mt with effective prices heard at INR 53,000-54,000/mt ($704-718/mt) ex-Chennai.
However, rebar price offers from induction furnaces around Raipur in central India have showed wide disparities, ranging from a low of INR 51,000/mt ($678/mt) to as high as INR 55,500/mt ($738/mt), sources said.
Integrated mills have maintained base prices at INR 56,000-57,000/mt ($744-757/mt) ex-works, though volume-based discounts averaging at INR 1,000/mt ($13/mt) have been heard in the market as a response by mills to the slight slowdown in bookings from large engineering and procurement companies (EPCs), sources said.
“On the demand side, unseasonal rains have brought new uncertainties. The expected pace of revival in the current quarter will be lower than usual. And this at a time when secondary mills are facing a strong cost push from shortages of coal and electricity and the resultant rise in energy costs,” a source at Shyam Steel, eastern India’s largest rebar producer, said.
“Producers will need to keep pushing up prices to offset cost increases irrespective of market demand. Using pricing to push volumes in the market is not viable under present conditions,” the sources said.
$1 = INR 75.20