The domestic ferro alloys market saw mixed trends this week with manganese alloys prices inching down further, while ferro silicon prices in Bhutan and ferro chrome prices remained stable.
Manganese ore
India’s manganese ore import prices for Mn: 44-46% dropped 2% w-o-w. Prices of Mn37% grade was at $4.6/dmtu, a marginal drop of 1% w-o-w; Mn44% stood at $6.05/dmtu, while Mn46% grade was offered at $6.45/dmtu. All prices are on CNF India basis. Furthermore, the Chinese manganese ore market also went down which impacted India’s imported manganese ore prices.
IEX Power
According to Indian Energy Exchange (IEX), the weekly average spot prices (19-25 February) in day-ahead-market registered a hike of 6% w-o-w to INR 7.792/unit as against INR INR 7.351/unit last week.
In the midst of soaring power demand, aggressive procurement continued whereas supply-side constraints further reduced availability of sell bids.
Silico manganese
Prices of silico manganese, exported from Haldia and Vizag ports, fell by 2-3% w-o-w. Prices of 60-14 grade fell by 3% w-o-w to $949/t, while 65-16 grade prices dropped 2% to $1,053/t amid lack of buying from overseas buyers. All prices are on FOB India basis.
Silico manganese prices were down 1-2% w-o-w to INR 75,980/t ex-Durgapur, INR 75,900/t ex-Vizag, and INR 76,000/t ex-Raipur. Both domestic and international demand has softened resulting in decline in prices.
Ferro manganese
India’s exported ferro manganese prices remained stable w-o-w at $970/t FOB India for HC70%. However, prices of HC75% grade fell by 3% to $1,066/t FOB India.
Meanwhile, domestic ferro manganese prices inched down by 2-3% w-o-w to INR 78,640/t ex-Durgapur, while ex-Raipur was assessed at INR 79,060/t. Prices of ferro manganese dropped due to subdued demand for special steels.
Ferro chrome
Indian ferro chrome prices remained firm w-o-w . Smelters were unwilling to reduce offers despite moderate demand as they expected further increase in ferro chrome purchase tender prices by Chinese stainless steel producers. On the other hand, stainless steel prices in India are under pressure and thus buyers are not interested in booking material at high prices.
Ferro silicon
According to SteelMint’s assessment on 24 February, Guwahati’s ferro silicon offers were at around INR 124,000/t exw. Prices inched down marginally due to hard bargaining by buyers. Softening in prices in China also impacted Indian ferro silicon prices. However, Bhutan producers kept their offers unchanged at INR 126,000/tonne (t) exw.
Trade
SteelMint recorded bulk deals of around 7,720 t of ferro alloys this week. Out of this, manganese deals comprised 5,500 t, ferro chrome 2,100 t, and ferro silicon around 500 t.
Tenders and auctions
- State-owned SAILbooked 1,750 t of medium carbon (MC) silico manganese (grade: 55-20, size:10-100 mm) at around INR 115,884/t on FOR, inclusive of GST and GEM portal charges through reverse auction conducted on 22 February for its Salem Steel Plant (SSP), Tamil Nadu.
- MOIL conducted an auction for 825 t of high-carbon (HC) ferro manganese of 63-72% grade, 500 t of ferro manganese slag and 3,275 t of manganese ore of dioxide grade on 24 February from its Bhandara mines and Balaghat plant.
- ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India (AM/NS India) has floated a supply tender for 1,600 t of low-carbon silico manganese (Mn: min 55%, C: min 0.2%, Size: 10-50 mm) from its Gujarat-based plant. The bid submission date is 27 February.
- Vedanta’s subsidiary, Ferro Alloys Corporation Limited (FACOR), has scheduled an auction for high-carbon ferro chrome of different grades and sizes on 28 February.
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