India: BigMint’s billet index drops further by INR 100/t d-o-d – 24 May

  • Index declines due to muted demand
  • Finished steel prices remain stable d-o-d

On May 24, 2024, BigMint’s billet index fell by INR 100/t to INR 44,400/t exw-Raipur.

Today, the index witnessed a further decline due to weak market sentiments and muted demand leading to a slowdown in offers. Only limited buying was observed in the semi-finished and finished steel markets throughout the day.

Total transactions today were just around 700 t, down from 2,800 t on 23 May.

Today, 1,500 t of rebar deals were heard in the finished steel category, with prices remaining the same for rebar and wire rods compared with yesterday. Prices of sponge iron dropped INR 300/t d-o-d.

The conversion spread from sponge iron (PDRI) to billets for the standalone furnaces in the region was recorded at INR 15,500/t.

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%.

  • Transactions (T1) – Two trades at INR 44,400/t were recorded during the 2:30 pm to 5:30 pm BigMint trading window and considered for final price calculation as T1 inputs. The average of these transactions was INR 44,400/t which is given a 50% weightage in the final price calculation.
  • Other Price Indicators – bids/offers/indicative (T2) – Nine offers reported in the trading window and considered as T2 inputs. The average price of these nine was INR 44,435/t and given a 50% weightage in the final price calculation.

The final price for billet exw Raipur was at INR 44,417/t, rounded to INR 44,400/t exw.

Click for detailed methodology

T1 – Trade, T2 – Offer/Bid/Indicative, *Normalized price as per methodology