Sponge iron prices in India witnessed mixed trends today, falling by INR 100-450/t in some key locations. On the other hand, prices in Rourkela, Mandi and Raigarh showed a marginal increase of INR 50-200/t. Spot trading remained moderate throughout the day across regions. Market participants are cautious about price movements and hence are trying to avoid bulk bookings.
About 16,210 t of sponge iron transactions were recorded today in India as against 5,810 t on 11 March.
Snapshots of key markets
- Rourkela: Prices inched up today. However, trades were still less than average, resulting in limited enquiries. Market participants were low on confidence about booking the material due to volatile price movements. This limited spot trading, with buyers engaging in need-based bookings
- Raipur: Majority of purchasers are in a wait-and-watch position. Hence, there were just some transactions reported today at INR 200–300/t below the offer price.
- Bellary: Today’s weak demand weighed on sponge iron prices, resulting in a slight decline in prices d-o-d. Buyers opted for a wait-and-watch approach, and are waiting for the market to stabilize.
- Durgapur: Prices fell down due to DVC power issue, followed by fluctuations in steel prices in the northern region. Buyers were cautious and purchased material based on immediate requirement and on lower offers. As a result, prices continued to drop.
- Ramgarh: Spot buying in sponge iron stayed low today as buyers remained cautious due to weak market sentiments and poor finished steel sales, which also limited the volume of sponge iron traded.
Rationale –
This index has been derived based on transactions, offers, bids and indicative price data sets. Transactions are considered as T1 and given a weightage of 50% whereas other data sets are considered as T2 and given a weightage of the balance 50%.
Click for detailed methodology
T1 – Trade, T2 – Offer/Bid/Indicative
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