- Tighter supply fails to support domestic tags
- Chinese domestic tags, ZCE futures hold firm
Indian ferro silicon (70%) prices inched down by INR 600/tonne (t) ($7/t) w-o-w in comparison to the previous assessment on 17 February. Prices fell, as buyers mostly preferred imported material, whose volumes surged, which led to lower inquiries in the domestic market.
Ferro silicon prices in India were at INR 100,700/t ($1,159/t) exw-Guwahati, as per BigMint’s assessment on 24 February. In Bhutan as well, prices edged down by INR 700/t ($8/t) w-o-w to INR 100,900/t ($1,161/t) exw. In total, trades for around 500 t were concluded last week in both regions, within the price range of INR 100,500-102,000/t ($1,157-1,174/t) exw.
Market summary (18-24 February 2025)
Import volumes touch 7-month peak in Jan’25: A major portion of ferro silicon demand in India is met by imports, whose volume stood at 19,506 t in January 2025, the highest since 21,561 t in May last year. Bhutan continued to be the leading exporter to India, but recently, there has been a surge in shipments from Malaysia and Russia as well.
This could have contributed to the decrease in inquiries for domestic material, despite supplies being impacted due to the closure of certain Meghalaya-based plants, whose collective monthly production is around 6,000-7,000 t.
With regard to it, a seller whose plant is closed informed BigMint, “We bought around 1,500 t of material from Bhutan to supply to previously booked tender orders. However, prices have not increased despite around 8,000 t of material being erased from the market.”
A seller from Bhutan stated, “We are offering material at INR 101,000-102,000/t ($1,162-1,174/t) exw, but buyers are countering with bids at INR 98,000-100,000/t ($1,128-1,151/t) exw.”
Chinese market remains stable: Ferro silicon (Si:75%) prices in China were steady w-o-w at RMB 6,320/t ($872/t) exw-Inner Mongolia. As mills resumed operations after the holiday break, the supply of ferro silicon gradually returned to normal levels. However, production did not increase significantly, as inventory levels were still on the higher side. Sentiments were weak due to a supply-demand gap (higher supply in comparison to demand), which might, in the coming days, lead to some adjustments in prices. However, the magnitude of change is expected to stay minimal.
Prices on the Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange (ZCE) remained stable, down slightly by RMB 36/t ($5/t) w-o-w to RMB 6,212/t ($857/t) on 24 February.
Outlook
Based on the current market trends, prices are expected to stay in a similar range, with some fluctuations. Bhutan is expected to release its March offers next week, which will further determine the price trajectory.
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