Amidst price competitiveness, Nepal mills have booked hefty volumes of BF- route billets over the IF-route ones, this week.
About 5-6 rakes (12,500-15,000 tonnes) of billet deals were reported this week through an eastern India-based primary mill at an average price of $650/t exw (loaded on to rake), equivalent to $665-670/t CPT Nepal.
Where the IF-route material is concerned, the fresh offers have been dropped to around $660/t as against $685-690/t, CPT Nepal, via road delivery seen at the beginning of week. As per trade sources, there are no major inquiries through the Nepalese mills and the major buyers are waiting for clear market directions as prices remain volatile.
Offers for IF-route wire rods stand at $690-695/t exw Durgapur, equivalent to $715-720/t CPT Nepal.
Nepal’s domestic rebar prices climb up
Domestic rebar prices in Nepal rose further and are currently hovering at NPR 92,000-93,000/tonne (t) ($768-777/t) for 10-20 mm through the mid-sized plants, while, those from the major mills producing premium brands are at around NPR 94,000/t ($785/t). Prices are on an ex-works basis and excluding VAT.
As per trade sources in Birgunj, demand remains subdued. However, the prices have been raised on account of a surge in the input costs of raw materials, including coal, ferro alloys, and sponge iron. Thus, mills are just passing the high input costs on to the end-users.
Adverse weather conditions have impacted local steel movements. Hence, inventories of finished steel products remain high, they added.
Outlook
Industry experts believe that due to the festive mood, trade is likely to remain limited in the Indian domestic as well as neighbouring markets. However, they are optimistic that rebar demand would increase after the festive season ends.
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