Prices of domestic zinc dross rose, while secondary zinc ingot rose on Monday from the prior week amid higher offers. Zinc alloy prices moved higher by over 1pc on back of LME zinc’s 2.6pc rise. Offers rose on the back of LME zinc gains during the week. The official three-month LME zinc contract rose $69/mt to $2,655.5/mt on Friday from a week prior. This led to a rise in prices of all scrap and ingot prices. With a rise in LME, primary zinc prices increased, also lifting prices of dross and other grades.
The Davis Index for zinc dross in Mumbai rose to Rs183,600/mt ($2,520/mt) ex-works producer, up Rs1,267/mt from a week ago on the back of higher offers despite stable demand. The market for the grade weakened with spreads for the index widening by 1.82pc from the prior week.
Demand for galvanized steel has started picking up slightly on the back of boost in government’s infrastructure spending. Construction steel demand is likely to increase in the coming days, said galvanizers.
In Delhi, zinc dross prices inched higher but were still lower than the rise in Mumbai. This resulted in the weekly index rising by Rs301/mt to Rs184,857/mt ex-works Delhi producer. The market for the grade weakened with spreads for the index widening by 2.35pc from the previous week. In Mumbai demand is slightly higher than in Delhi.
Primary zinc prices rose by Rs5,000/mt to approximately Rs216,000-221,000/mt del India on Monday from the prior week, said galvanizers. A higher primary zinc price resulted in galvanizers raising prices of dross in both Mumbai and Delhi. With tyre industry’s demand rising, dross prices are expected to remain firm.
The weekly Davis Index for secondary zinc ingot on Monday in Delhi rose by Rs1,450/mt to Rs189,200/mt ex-works consumer amid firm demand from brass manufacturers. The market for the grade weakened with spreads for the index contracting by 0.77pc from the prior week. The weekly index for secondary zinc ingot in Mumbai Monday rose by Rs1,600 to Rs185,800/mt ex-works consumer. Markets weakened for the grade in Mumbai too with spreads contracting by 0.87pc from a week ago. Brass manufacturers are the biggest consumers of secondary zinc ingots. Manufacturers are expecting demand for brass ingots and semi-finished products to pick up and said, demand is fairly strong at the moment too.
The Davis Index for new zinc diecast on Monday settled at $2,297/mt, up by $53/mt from the prior week. Demand for the grade remains firm, said traders. Prices are higher on the back of rise in LME and firm global demand for the grade. Spreads for the index widened, depicting a weakened market for the scrap.
The Davis Index for Zamak #3 on Monday settled at Rs225,675/mt del India consumer, up by Rs3,900/mt from prior Monday levels. Prices are solely up on the back of higher LME levels and primary zinc levels, the basic raw material for production of Zamak. The weekly Davis Index for Zamak #5 settled at Rs228,675/mt up by Rs3,900/mt on Monday. Markets for both the grades weakened, spreads narrowed by over 1.7pc from the previous week. A higher primary zinc price drives zinc alloy prices higher, while the prices of zinc alloys are sensitive to LME levels and mostly move in sync. Demand for both Zamak #3 and Zamak #5 were firm on Monday.
($1 = Rs72.85)