India: ERW patra pipe prices show mixed momentum w-o-w; market sentiment turns optimistic

• Trades stay limited despite fresh inquiries from major buyers
• Raw material prices climb up w-o-w in Raipur but fall in Mandi

Indian ERW patra pipe (41-60 OD) prices showed mixed momentum this week. Prices rose in Raipur; however, they dropped in the Mandi Gobindgarh market. Although market sentiment seemed to have improved by the middle of the week, buyers remained cautious regarding procuring bulk volumes.

Inquiries picked up towards the middle of the week in both Raipur and Mandi; however, conversion to trades remained low. Additionally, some traders shared that major customers started surfacing with inquiries this week.

Raipur: Prices were up by INR 200/t at INR 40,200/t on Friday, compared to INR 40,000/t a week ago. Trade volumes of around 710 t were recorded this week.

Mandi: Prices were lower by INR 400/t at INR 42,600/t on 19 September against INR 43,000/t in the previous week. Trade volumes of 2,280 t were recorded this week.

D-o-d price trends

D-o-d, prices were up by INR 200/t in Raipur against INR 40,000/t and also in Mandi Gobindgarh against INR 42,400/t. Listed prices are ex-works (exw), excluding 18% GST.

Raw material price trends

Prices of key raw materials such as hot-rolled strips (patra) and billets also showed varying movements in Raipur and Mandi Gobindgarh on a w-o-w basis.

HR strip (patra) prices rose by INR 200/t to INR 40,000/t exw-Raipur as of 19 September, compared to INR 39,800/t last week. Meanwhile, the same was down by INR 400/t w-o-w at INR 41,600/t exw-Mandi on 19 September as against INR 42,000/t a week ago.

Steel billet prices in Raipur were up by INR 100/t w-o-w to INR 36,950/t exw on 19 September compared with INR 36,850/t in the previous week. However, billet prices in Mandi were assessed at INR 39,550/t DAP on 19 September, down by INR 50/t w-o-w against INR 39,600/t DAP on 12 September.

Outlook

ERW patra-based pipe prices are likely to move upward in the near term. Fresh inquiries have been received from big industrial consumers and construction businesses during the week, which has led to optimism. Moreover, participants believe that prices may fluctuate, but steeper drops are unlikely in the upcoming weeks.