Indian HRC prices have corrected by INR 1,000/MT (USD 15/MT) in July and INR 2,000/MT (USD 30/MT) since April.
Domestic Market Scenario
Indian flat steel prices in domestic market have corrected by INR 1,000/MT M-o-M. Despite import duty hike of 10% by Indian government in June, there is no impact on Chinese offers in July. This in turn has pressurized domestic players to further cut down their prices in order to compete with cheaper import.
On account of subdued demand amid seasonal slowdown and availability of cheaper import offers, domestic players have announced discounts of INR 500-1,000/MT on bulk bookings.
Domestic Prices’ Snapshot for July
| Region | HRC | CRC | ||
| Prices | M-o-M | Prices | M-o-M | |
| Delhi | 34,000 | -1,000 | 39,500 | -1,500 |
| Kolkata | 34,000 | -1,000 | 39,000 | -1,000 |
| Mumbai | 33,500 | -1,000 | 38,500 | -2,000 |
| Chennai | 34,000 | -1,000 | 38,500 | -1,000 |
| MS Plate | ||||
| Ex-works | 28,000 | -1,000 | ||
Prices in INR/MT
Sources: SteelMint Research
Global Market Scenario
In the month of July, import offers in flat steel market from countries like China, Japan, Korea and Russia have fallen by about 10%. Though, Chinese manufacturers have continued offering low-priced material, Korean and Japanese steelmakers have declined their prices by USD 15-20/MT. However as per trade sources, there are limited offers from Korean mills because of low domestic demand for Korean products amid availability of cheaper Chinese products in the market.
Indian export offers have dipped by USD 10-20/MT. However, Indian steelmakers are not competing aggressively with the global players due to better sales realizations in the domestic market.
Global Prices’ Snapshot for July
|
Countries |
HRC | CRC | MS Plates | |||
| Prices | M-o-M | Prices | M-o-M | Prices |
M-o-M |
|
| FoB India | 395 | -3 | 440 | -20 | – | – |
| FoB China | 310 | -40 | 390 | -30 | – | – |
| FoB Japan | 340 | -30 | 450 | -15 | – | – |
| FoB Korea | 345 | -35 | 450 | -20 | – | – |
| FoB Black Sea | 330 | -18 | 430 | -10 | – | – |
| CNF India (From Korea/Japan) | 370 | -15 | 460 | -30 | – | – |
| CNF India (From China) | 330 | -20 | 415 | -35 | 340 | -15 |
| CNF India (From Indonesia) | – | – | – | – | 375 | -30 |
Prices in USD/MT
Sources: SteelMint Research
Future Prospects
As per trade sources, there are mixed sentiments for flat steel prices in the upcoming months. Market participants believe that China will further cut their prices for its September shipments, which in turn will put more pressure on domestic players. Whereas, few market players expect that major Indian steel giants like Tata Steel and SAIL will go for plant maintenance, which may stabilize prices in domestic market.
India’s Flat Steel Export & Import in June’15
|
Products |
Import |
Export |
| HRC | 196.80 | 51.41 |
| CRC | 159.08 | 61.68 |
| MS Plate | 128.75 | 3.75 |
Quantity in MnT
Source: JPC
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