Prices of zinc scrap in India were mixed this week. Domestic zinc dross prices rose in the range of Rs2,875 -4,575/mt in the week, while secondary zinc ingots fell by Rs12,000/mt on weak demand.
The weekly Davis Index for galvanizer’s dross settled at Rs151,575/mt ($2,083.53) ex-works Mumbai producer, up by Rs4,575/mt on Monday. A spurt in demand for domestic zinc dross was largely driven by the Indian government’s ban on dross imports. Zinc dross is used to produce zinc oxide, which in turn becomes raw material in the manufacture of cosmetics, sanitary ware, industrial coatings and paints.
The biggest zinc oxide consumer in India is the tire industry. After a week of active buying, tire companies have now slashed their bookings of zinc oxide by around 40pc. Manufacturers believe this could lead to a glut of dross in the near term reflecting in its prices in the near term. The Davis Index for galvanizer’s dross settled at Rs157,200/mt ex-works Delhi producer, up by Rs2,875/mt on Monday.
The Davis Index for secondary zinc ingots settled at Rs157,700/mt, down by Rs12,500/mt ex-works Mumbai consumer from the prior week. Car sales in Indian markets fell in February driving automakers to curtail their March production. These production cuts pressured prices of zinc ingots.
The index for secondary zinc ingots in Delhi settled at Rs154,075/mt ex-works consumer, down by Rs12,208/mt.
New zinc diecast importers placed bids lower by $75/mt than the present offers at $1,550/mt, thus no trades were reported. The Davis Index for new zinc diecast settled at $1,505/mt cfr India port, down by $45/mt from the week prior.
Zinc alloys
Zinc alloy prices in India fell on Monday in line with a fall in LME zinc. The three-month LME zinc contract settled at $2,022/mt, down by $83/mt on Friday.
LME zinc stocks reached their highest levels in the week since August 2019 and prices recorded a steep decline; the sharpest fall since September 2015. Primary zinc producers revised their prices to match this decline in LME prices. The Davis Index for Zamak #3 settled at Rs178,786/mt del India consumer, down by Rs6,171/mt from the week prior.
Zinc primary producers revised prices of special high-grade zinc to Rs172,900/mt effective Feb 27, from Rs177,500/mt on Feb 24. Die-casters using Zamak adopted a wait-and-see approach amid uncertainty that looms in a sluggish market. The Davis Index for Zamak #5 settled at Rs181,786/mt del India consumer, down by Rs6,171/mt from the week prior.
($1 = Rs72.74)