- Cautious demand, healthy trade discounts drive down prices
- Prices of raw materials – billets, sponge iron – plunge m-o-m
Indian wire rod prices declined m-o-m in June 2025. In the induction furnace (IF)-route segment, wire rod prices witnessed a monthly average decrease of INR 1,800/tonne (t) ($21/t) to INR 40,800/t ($478/t) exw-Durgapur and by INR 1,650/t ($19/t) to INR 41,400/t ($485/t) exw-Raipur as compared to May. IF wire rod prices hit a seven-month low in June in both locations amid weak demand.
Spot trade reference prices stood at INR 41,000/t ($480/t) exw-Raipur and INR 40,900/t ($479/t) exw-Durgapur as on 3 July.
Notably, for IF-route wire rods, Raipur (central region) and Durgapur (eastern region) are the major supply centres catering to various other markets across the country. The cumulative daily wire rod production capacity in these two markets is around 20,000 t, as per data maintained with BigMint.
Wire rod prices (5.5-6mm, SAE1008) were assessed at INR 49,300/t ($577/t) exw-Jharkhand as per BigMint’s assessment on 27 June.
Factors behind market dynamics
Raw material prices fall: Prices of steel billets and sponge iron, which are key raw materials used in IF-route production, fell amid bearish market sentiment due to limited trade activity and consistent price pressure across key regions. Major producers faced challenges in liquidating material due to intense competition and shrinking margins. Considering the Raipur market as a benchmark, billet prices fell by INR 880/t ($10/t) m-o-m to INR 37,000/t ($433/t), while sponge iron (PDRI, FeM 80% +/- 1) saw a sharper decline of INR 1,300/t ($15/t) m-o-m to INR 22,400/t ($262) exw (spot prices taken from 1 June to 30 June 2025).
Buying remains sluggish: Inquiries for wire rods were dull in June. End-users of wire rods, such as binding and GI wire manufacturers, were cautious about bulk procurement owing to uncertainty in market direction and purchased only as per immediate requirements to operate mills. Additionally, wire rod manufacturers offered healthy trade discounts, depending on the inventories piled up at mills, to liquidate their material. This led to wire rod prices hitting a seven-month low in June in both key locations, i.e, Raipur and Durgapur.
Primary mills see weak demand: In the BF-segment, wire rod prices (5.5-6mm, SAE1008) dropped by INR 2,000/t ($23/t) m-o-m to an average of INR 49,600/t ($581/t) exw-Jharkhand in June.
Wire rod demand remained weak throughout the month, with prices continuing their downtrend amid sluggish offtake from key end-user industries such as construction and automotive. Buyers largely stayed on the sidelines due to price volatility and market uncertainty. Major primary producers reduced their prices and offered discounts to liquidate inventories during the period.
Outlook
The current situation may persist in the near term, and prices could decline further. Buying inquiries are likely to remain slow amid the seasonal impact.
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