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MOSL: METALS WEEKLY-Steep fall in Chinese HRC prices to pressurize Indian HRC prices

METALS WEEKLY: Steep fall in Chinese HRC prices to pressurize Indian HRC prices

 

• Indian steel: Long product (TMT Mumbai) prices were down ~1% WoW. Sponge iron prices were down ~1% WoW and scrap prices were down ~4% WoW. Few private mills trimmed domestic iron ore prices by INR300-500/t. Pellet prices were lower. Domestic HRC prices were marginally lower. With a sharp fall in Chinese HRC prices and safeguard/anti-dumping threshold limit still USD60-80/t lower, Indian steel mills are staring at an inevitable price cut of INR3,000-4,000/t over the next few months.
• Raw materials: Iron ore prices (China CFR) were down ~2% WoW. Thermal coal prices were unchanged. Coking coal prices were down ~2% WoW. China’s pellet import prices were down ~1% WoW. Chinese graphite electrode prices were marginally higher.
• Europe: HRC prices were down ~1% WoW. CIS HRC export prices were down another ~1% WoW. Rotterdam scrap prices were marginally lower.
• China steel prices: Chinese local rebar and HRC prices were down ~1-2% WoW. Export price of rebar were down ~8%, while HRC prices were down ~3% WoW.
• Base metals: Aluminum (cash LME) was unchanged, while Alumina prices were lower. Copper (cash LME) was unchanged. Zinc (cash LME) was also unchanged, but Lead was down ~1% WoW. Brent crude prices were down ~12% WoW.