Cold Rolled Coils shortage across some trading regions spurs possibility for cheaper imported materials. Coils of specific thickness which find applications in general fabrications and local furniture manufacturing industry are in short supply across some trading regions.
An official of secondary CRC manufacturer while talking to SteelMint said, “There is a temporary shortage of CRC product in Maharashtra market.” Prices here traded at a premium. The official further added to say, “We have seen a good volume of orders from Original Equipment Manufacturers and are unable to cater to the needs of the traders as of now.” One of the distributors in Mumbai offered CRC (0.9 and above) at around INR 53,000/MT (including ED, VAT extra), which was quite higher than the normal trading price here.
Some market sources believe, prices of CRC products manufactured by primary players are trading higher as compared to secondary manufacturers and thus traders are seeking materials from secondary players.
A secondary manufacturer based in Hyderabad offered CRC at around INR 43,000/MT (Incl ED, VAT Extra), but is reluctant to take any bookings for now owing to strong order book.
Hyderabad markets too experienced shortage of some specific thickness of Coils. One of the traders here said, “Cold Rolled Coils of thickness 0.6-0.8 mm and that of thickness 1 – 2 mm are in shortage. We are unable to procure these orders from primary manufacturers as some of them are unable to provide us the desired quantity and thus we are looking to book orders from nearby states as well.”
Similarly, shortage of CRC products was also seen at Chennai market.
“CR Coils of thickness 0.35-0.45 mm are in great demand here as these are consumed by local furniture manufacturing units. We have seen a good demand from these local manufacturing units now and this has forced us to either rely on other states or look for imported materials.”
Import Scenario
As per trade sources, Imported offers of CRC have been hovering in the range of USD 600-650/MT CFR Chennai. If this trend of shortage continues for a longer period, traders may find it lucrative to import their requirements as the exchange rate has appreciated to a 10 months high touching the levels of 58. Market participants speculated that the strengthening of domestic currency will also trigger imports of CRC products.
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