Indian ferrous scrap importers continued to book HMS. Demand for shredded, however, remained subdued as buyers found its prices high in the present domestic fundamentals. Offers for shredded and prime grades were firm amid tight availability.
Finished steel demand continued to stay weak with the arrival of the monsoon season in almost all major markets.
Mills lowered their bids for imported ferrous scrap, but most sellers hope that the market will absorb the present price levels.
The daily Davis Index for containerized shredded, Thursday, remained unchanged at $525/mt cfr Nhava Sheva. Offers were at $530/mt cfr Nhava Sheva, but buyers targeted prices below $515-520/mt cfr. The depreciated Indian currency above Rs74 levels against the $1 compared to Rs72 early this month and logistic challenges globally, may limit trades.
The daily Davis Index for US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) was at $495/mt cfr Nhava Sheva, down by $2.5/mt. A decline in bids, driven by the availability of competitively priced UAE-origin HMS, affected sentiment for booking the grade from Latin America, UK, Australia, and Africa.
In Chennai, offers for #1 HMS from the UAE were at around $490/mt cfr. But mills were not interested in these levels amid low steel demand due to the monsoon. The index for UAE-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) dropped by $2/mt to $471/mt cfr Nhava Sheva. Trading picked up as prices dropped to $470/mt cfr Nhava Sheva. Some mills actively searched for lower-priced HMS and kept their bids at $450-455/mt cfr.
In Alang, melting scrap prices on Thursday moved up by Rs500/mt to Rs36,600/mt ex-yards.
In Mumbai, rebar prices declined by Rs200/mt from Tuesday on subdued demand to Rs45,800/mt ex-works. In Mandi Gobindgarh, the ingot index remained unchanged at Rs44,200/mt ex-works on Thursday.
In China, domestic billet prices continued to drop as the government increased drive to control commodity prices speculation amid inflation worries. Spot prices for billet remained unchanged at CNY4,820/mt ($742/mt) ex-Tangshan inclusive of VAT. Iron ore prices for ferrous content 62pc declined marginally to $216.5/mt cfr North China.
Subcontinent
The daily Davis Index for containerized shredded, Wednesday, settled at $529.25/mt cfr Indian subcontinent, down by $0.2/mt; while that for containerized US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at $500/mt cfr Indian subcontinent, down by $2.38/mt.
($1=Rs74.22)