India’s domestic ferrous scrap prices were mixed on Wednesday. Traders continued to face a cash crunch and stayed away from booking ferrous scrap.
The daily Davis Index for HMS 1&2 (80:20) declined by Rs107/mt ($1.45/mt) to Rs21,993/mt ($299.4/mt) del Mandi Gobindgarh and the daily index for sponge iron fell by Rs725/mt to Rs21,050/mt del Mandi Gobindgarh.
Sponge iron traders decreased offers, despite increase in input costs which rose due to low availability of iron ore. Discounts were offered as traders looked to pay off sponge iron manufacturers within the stipulated time. Offers have been lowered in Mandi by Rs400-500/mt from Tuesday.
The daily Davis Index for HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled unchanged at Rs23,150/mt del Mumbai mills. In a week until Tuesday, sponge iron prices fell by a total of Rs200-300/mt. On Wednesday, however, sponge iron prices were unchanged at Rs19,400/mt delivered Mumbai.
Traders expect ferrous scrap prices to remain under pressure, impacted by weak demand for finished steel.
($1 = Rs73.43)