Indian importers have started receiving Billet offers from South African exporters owing to depreciating South African currency, which has depreciated by about 7% in last one month. South African Rand has depreciated to 12.44 per USD in March against 11.66 per USD in February.
Current offers for Billet are assessed at USD 385/MT, CIF Indian West Coast in containers for March end deliveries. Cost of import is cheaper by INR 500/MT.
Cost of Imports as on 16 Mar’15
| Particular | Cost |
| CIF India | USD 385/MT |
| Import Duty @ 5% | USD 19/MT |
| Port Handling Charges at Indian Ports | USD 25/MT |
| Total Cost of Imports in USD | USD 429/MT |
| Cost of Imports in INR (at 63 per USD) | INR 27,000/MT |
| Local Transportation to Plant site in Mumbai | INR 700/MT |
| Landed Cost of Imported Billet | INR 27,700/MT |
| Domestic Billet Prices in Mumbai | INR 28,100/MT |
Chinese Exporters offer Billet at USD 375-380/MT for Break Bulk Shipments
On the other hand, Chinese exporters are offering Billet at USD 375-380/MT, CIF Indian ports for break bulk shipments (i.e. for 10,000-15,000 MT), though no trade deals have been heard to be settled at these levels.
“Indian re-rollers are not very keen to take position for bulk shipment. However, they will not mind trying some import of material in small quantities of 200-500 MT,” said an Indian steel importer.
Billet Prices as on 16 Mar’15
| Particular | Prices | W-o-W* | M-o-M* |
| Ex-Mumbai | INR 28,100/MT | – 600 | – 1,100 |
| Ex-Chennai | INR 28,400/MT | – 600 | – 100 |
| Ex-Raipur | INR 26,500/MT | – 1,250 | + 250 |
| FoB Black Sea | USD 360/MT | NA | 0 |
| CIF India (China) | USD 375-380/MT | – | – |
| CIF India (S. Africa) | USD 385/MT | – | – |
*Prices in INR/MT
Source: SteelMint Research
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