Domestic ferrous scrap prices rose on Monday on a continued shortage of material. The collection of scrap remains affected by the ongoing monsoons, which has also slowed down transportation.
The daily Davis Index for HMS 1&2 (80:20) rose by Rs200/mt ($2.69/mt) to Rs35,700/mt del Mumbai mills and the index for sponge iron rose by Rs100/mt to Rs31,400/mt del mills.
Domestic demand for finished steel is still under pressure as construction activities remained affected by the ongoing monsoon. Large-scale mills have, therefore, focussed on exports of semi-finished steel.
The daily Davis Index for HMS 1&2 (80:20) rose by Rs500/mt to Rs36,600/mt del Mandi Gobindgarh and the index for sponge iron rose by Rs300/mt to Rs35,200/mt delivered mills. Mills bought scrap only to meet their immediate melt requirements as finished steel sales remain slow, at least until the withdrawal of monsoons. Still, market participants expect ferrous scrap prices to remain firm due to a continued shortage.
Shipbreaking scrap prices in Alang remained unchanged on Monday as transporters continued to strike demanding increased freight.
($1=Rs74.3)