Ingot and billet prices slipped in most of the secondary market due to bearish market sentiment. Traders feel prices are unlikely to dip further due to high sponge iron prices.
The daily Davis Index for billet in Raipur dipped by Rs100/mt ($1/mt) to settle at Rs42,200/mt ($569/mt) ex-works on Thursday as suppliers reduced offers. Some billet deals were reported at Rs42,000/mt. In the second half, sellers raised offers in following cues in Mandi Gobindgarh market.
Offers for pellet sponge stayed firm at Rs31,000/mt ($417/mt) ex-works with limited takers. The daily index for rebar fell by Rs300/mt ($4/mt) to Rs45,700/mt ($615/mt) ex-works Raipur.
Secondary steel mills in Raipur got very few enquiries from end-users despite reducing rebar offers. They said many traders are selling rebar at prices below mills’ offers.
In Mumbai, the daily index for billet fell by Rs300/mt to Rs43,200/mt ex-works following a fall in rebar prices. The index for rebar was down by Rs500/mt to Rs47,400/mt ex-works, after remaining flat for the last three days.
In Jalna, the bi-weekly index for billet remained flat at Rs43,500/mt ex-works from Tuesday while the bi-weekly index for rebar was down by Rs500/mt to Rs31,250/mt ex-works. Mills are getting enquiries for rebar in large numbers and expect to see better sales in the rest of the week.
In Mandi Gobindgarh, the daily index for ingot was down by Rs600/mt to Rs44,800/mt ex-works, in line with the fall in local scrap prices.
In Chennai, the bi-weekly Davis Index for billet decreased by Rs1,000/mt to settle at 45,000 ($473.8/mt) on Thursday from Tuesday due to weak demand. The index for rebar fell by Rs500/mt to Rs51,000/mt.
($1= Rs74.22)