The local Indian rebar market has showed some stability with prices recording marginal gains, but trade channels have maintained their negative outlook, ruling out possibilities of the recent gains continuing in view of surplus supplies and steadily weakening demand, SteelOrbis learned from trade and industry circles on Tuesday, August 20.
Indian trade rebar prices are up a marginal INR 100/mt ($1.19/mt) to INR 45,100/mt ($538/mt) ex-Mumbai and are unchanged at INR 47,000/mt ($560/mt) ex-Chennai in the south.
Rebar trade prices have gained INR 200/mt ($2/mt) to INR 42,200/mt ($503/mt) ex-Raipur and but are down 200/mt ($2/mt) to INR 40,900/mt ($487/mt) ex-Durgapur in the east.
Traders said that the small gains seen in some regional markets are on the back of very small volumes and more in the nature of a positive correction after sustained losses and any uptrend is unlikely to gain momentum in the face of fundamentally weak demand for large construction projects and real estate development activities.
“The market is very weak on the demand side. Large engineering procurement construction (EPC) companies are not placing new bookings, while the retail trade by small real estate developers is also negligible in terms of volumes. Under the circumstances, the best short- and medium-term outlook can be that prices will remain range-bound,” a Kolkata-based distributor said.
“Trade channels are still carrying away above average inventories and it is only a matter of time before a fresh wave of discounted sales emerges,” he said.
$1 = INR 83.90
