India: Sponge iron prices drop by up to INR 550/t on soft steel demand – 13 May

  • Spot trade volumes decrease d-o-d
  • Billet prices fall by INR 100-500/t

Sponge iron prices in all key domestic markets dropped in the range of INR 50-550/tonne (t) on 13 May, 2024 due to soft steel demand.

PDRI market prices closed at a range of INR 27,800-29,200/t and CDRI prices, at INR 29,500-35,200/t.

South African RB2 prices remained stable today. Non-coking RB2 (5500 NAR) exw Gangavaram stand at INR 9,900/t ($118/t).

Limited spot transactions were seen which led to a decline in both offers and bids.

Only 6,000 tonnes (t) of sponge iron transactions were recorded in the country on Monday compared to 7,000 t on 10 May.

A decline in billet prices by INR 100-500/t was also one of the reasons behind the drop in sponge iron prices. Market participants are cautious about the price movements and anticipating a further price correction this week.

Rationale –

Prices have 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