Import scrap prices in India have increased, largely reacting to rising freight costs, but trade activity has remained negligible amid low demand and secondary mills facing declining finished steel prices and lower capacity utilization of furnaces, SteelOrbis learned from trade and industry circles on Wednesday, January 17.
Ex-Europe containerized shredded scrap offers are at $422-425/mt CFR Nhava Sheva port in the west, up from $415-420/mt CFR a week ago, while offers to some other ports for shredded may be as high as $427-430/mt CFR. However, market sources agree that, with no deals, the tradable level is still lower, at $420/mt CFR maximum. Offers for HMS (80:20) scrap in containers have been reported in the range of $400-405/mt CFR, compared to $398-400/mt CFR a week ago.
The sources said that, according to forwarders, ex-Europe freight rates for Indian west coast ports have almost doubled to $1,500-1,800 per twenty-foot containers, and this was reflected in higher quotes being submitted by sellers.
“A number of local and global factors have been responsible for the lack of trade activity. Severe winter conditions in northern region have forced induction furnace operators to further lower plant utilization levels in the face of the shortage of workers. Furnaces were already operating at lower levels owing to weak rebar prices. The upcoming national elections are also creating nervousness in the market,” a Mumbai-based ferrous and non-ferrous scrap dealer said.
“At the global level, continuously rising freight rates will continue to rein in buyers. US sellers, an alternative to sourcing from Europe and the Suez-Red Sea maritime route, are not very active either in the Indian market. Hence, we expect the current moribund conditions in the import trade to be prolonged further,” he said.