- Raipur pellet offers stable
- Sponge iron, billet prices fall
BigMint’s bi-weekly domestic pellet (Fe 63%) index fell by INR 100/t ($1/t) to INR 10,350/t ($124/t) DAP Raipur on 10 May, 2024 compared to the last assessment on 7 May. Raipur steelmakers booked around 35,000 t of pellets (Fe62.5/63%) from the neighbouring regions at INR 9,800-10,100/t DAP Raipur in this publishing window.
The buyers in Raipur are getting deals concluded from the nearer cities and Odisha region recently. The buyers preferred to book outside region material to get decent steel margin in the last couple of days.
Godawari Power & Ispat Limited (GPIL) has kept pellet offers for Fe63.5% and Fe 66% stable at INR 10,900/t ($130/t) and INR 12,400/t ($148/t) exw-Raipur respectively on 10 May. Other producers’ offers reported stable at INR 10,500-10,600/t ($126-127/t) exw.
The market participants are waiting for the market dynamics in the next two three days as price may get revised on steel market downtrend. However, the NMDC’s reduced iron ore rake availability owing to ongoing workers slowdown is also a matter of concern for the steel producers.
A buyer said: “The sharp hike in the pellet price in last few days led the bulk deals fall were witnessed from local Raipur plants. The recent drop in the sponge and finished steel prices created a concern between buyers about the sustainability of the pellet offers. So they are in waiting mode and will book the material next week on the need basis.”
- Sponge P-DRI prices fall INR 400/t d-o-d: BigMint’s P-DRI (FeM 80%) prices decreased by INR 400/t ($5/t) d-o-d to INR 29,500/t ($353/t) exw on 10 May. On the other hand, prices remained stable compared to the last week. Indian sponge iron prices dropped by INR 50-600/t today in major locations. Sponge iron prices fell due to the downtrend in the semi-finished and finished long steel segments which led to a weak demand throughout the day.
- Billet prices drop INR 400/t d-o-d: Billet prices in Raipur fell by INR 400/t ($5/t) d-o-d to INR 44,550/t ($533/t) exw on 7 May while prices remained stable w-o-w. The billet index continued its downward trend today, driven by weak buying demand and limited inquiries in both the semi-finished and finished steel segments. Buyers are resisting purchases in the falling market, opting instead for a cautious approach as they await signs of market stability.
Rationale
- PELLEX has been derived using data points, i.e., trades, offers, and bids. To download the detailed methodology Click here.
- Three (3) deals were reported so far in this publishing window and two (2) were taken into account for price calculation and accorded 50% weightage for T1 trade.
- Thirteen (13) firm offers, bids, and indicative prices were heard. Six (6) were taken for price calculation and given the balance 50% weightage.
Outlook:
Pellet prices in Raipur may remain volatile following the buyers cautious approach on current offers. However, the pellet market will depend on the near term performance of sponge and finished steel commodities.