Primary stainless steel producer Jindal Stainless Limited (JSL) has announced a hike in its finished products prices recently, reliable sources informed SteelMint.
Prices of the 300 series stainless steel have been increased by INR 3,000/tonne (t) over the base price. Prices are on exw basis.
Notably, JSL is one of the leading stainless steel producers in India, holding more than 70% share in the finished stainless steel flats market. Following this is Rimjhim Stainless Ltd that holds about 20% market share.
SteelMint’s price assessment of 304-grade stainless steel HRCs stood at INR 240,000/t on ex-Mumbai basis on 20 September from INR 237,000/t in the previous week. Meanwhile, Indian 304-grade stainless steel scrap prices stood almost stable w-o-w at INR 136,000/t ex-Delhi on 22 September.
Factors leading to the price hike-
- Supply shortage in the domestic market
There is a shortage of finished stainless steel products in the domestic market at present. It was learnt that one of the major producers sold a hefty volume at discounted prices last week, creating a shortage in the domestic market. The delivery time has also now increased to 2-3 months from a month previously.
There is no other producer, except Rimjhim Stainless Ltd (that too with limited quantity), available to cater to the domestic market.
Moreover, due to weak demand in recent months, producers cut production and kept low inventory.
- Finished imports down, POSCO cancels export orders
In recent import data and as per market sources, a decent volume of stainless steel slabs was imported into India from Indonesia in a significant treaty.
It is also observed that imports of Chinese/Indonesian-origin stainless steel HRCs/CRCs into India have seen a significant decrease lately.
Supply issues from South Korea in the near term, with POSCO pulling back from the export market, is another major concern for Indian importers. Due to the Typhoon Hinnamnor and heavy flood situation at POSCO’s Pohang works, its stainless steel production lines went under water. As a result, the steelmaker has cancelled all orders as the maintenance works are going on and it may take 3 months to resume normal operations.
Meanwhile, finished stainless steel imports are not viable from any other country due to high prices.
- LME nickel futures on upswing
Three-month nickel futures on the London Metals Exchange (LME) have been on an uptrend since the beginning of September 2022 after dropping to around $20,311/t on 1 September.
Prices were assessed at $23,411/t as on 23 September, higher by 15% compared to prices on 1 September.
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