Indian mills were largely away from booking imported ferrous scrap. Following weakening steel prices in China and a decline in the Turkish bulk scrap buying prices, mills believe prices in India could fall by $10/mt at the minimum. Yet, most sellers feel this downtrend could be limited and kept their asking prices firm or stayed away from fresh offers.
Steel demand in the domestic market is bearish due to the monsoon rains slowing the pace of construction. Logistical challenges globally due to COVID-19 infections in China and the UK further dampened sentiment. The Indian currency also depreciated to above Rs74 against $1 from below $73 around ten days ago.
The Davis Index for containerized shredded, Tuesday, dropped by $3.75/mt from Monday to settle at $526.25/mt cfr Nhava Sheva. Offers were at $530/mt cfr Nhava Sheva, with deals for a limited volume of shredded reported in the range of $525-530/mt cfr Nhava Sheva. An alloy maker was heard to have bought containerized shredded late last week at $535-537/mt cfr Nhava Sheva on special payment terms.
The Davis Index for US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) was at $505/mt cfr Nhava Sheva, down by $1.25/mt. Bullish indications in their domestic market for July kept expectations from sellers high.
In Chennai, offers for #1 HMS from the UAE were still above $500/mt cfr. Amid weak steel demand due to monsoon, easing supply, bids declined; and the index for UAE-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) dropped by $6/mt to $480/mt cfr Nhava Sheva. Bids on Tuesday were in the range of $475-480/mt cfr Nhava Sheva. Mills were looking for lower-priced HMS and kept their bids at an equivalent of $465-470/mt cfr Nhava Sheva for the material of West Africa-origin.
In Alang, melting scrap prices on Tuesday dropped by Rs800/mt to Rs36,700/mt ex-yards. Demand for scrap, however, picked up from casting manufacturers.
In Mumbai, rebar prices declined by Rs200/mt from Monday on subdued demand to Rs46,300/mt ex-works. In Mandi Govindgarh, ingot prices were unchanged at Rs44,500/mt ex-works.
In China, domestic billet prices continued to drop as the government intensified its drive to control commodity prices and speculation amid inflation worries. Spot prices for billet fell by CNY50/mt from Monday to CNY4,800/mt ($741.4/mt) ex-Tangshan, inclusive of VAT. Steel futures declined by another over CNY100/mt.
Iron ore prices for ferrous content 62pc dropped below $206.5/mt cfr North China on Tuesday. Chinese ferrous scrap prices for HRS101 grades were unchanged at $550/mt cfr China.
Subcontinent
The daily Davis Index for containerized shredded, Tuesday, settled at $531.38/mt cfr Indian subcontinent, down by $3.75/mt; while that for containerized US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at $509/mt cfr Indian subcontinent, down by $1.44/mt.
The supply-demand imbalance for containers due to restrictions in Chinese ports has led to a possibility of another round of freight hikes by shipping companies. This could result in increased landed costs.
($1=Rs74.3)