India – Sponge iron prices ease as demand improves, signaling a cautious market recovery

• Prices soften across regions

• Volumes improve slightly, gradual market recovery

India’s sponge iron prices declined by INR 100-400/t across regions on 18 March. Buying interest remained moderate throughout the day, supported by price revisions. After a phase of sluggish demand over the past few days, the market witnessed some improvement in trading activity, although overall sentiment remained cautious.

Demand from both the finished and semi-finished steel segments improved, leading to a firmer overall market sentiment. Consequently, buying activity gained some traction, with participants showing increased willingness to engage in the market, though transactions largely remained aligned with immediate requirements rather than aggressive bulk procurement.

Trade volumes increased slightly today, with transactions recorded at around 7,900 t, compared to approximately 6,650 t in the previous session, indicating a marginal improvement in market activity. However, volumes remained significantly lower than the ~19,800 t levels seen earlier, reflecting a gradual and cautious recovery in buying interest.

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%.
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