Ex-India trade in hot dip galvanized (HDG) coils has remained inactive amid price declines in Europe and the Gulf, with buyers taking a pause from restocking even as local sellers have kept prices unchanged owing to low export allocations and year-end considerations, SteelOrbis learned from trade and industry circles on Thursday, February 22. Meanwhile, some business activity has been heard in the cold rolled coil (CRC) segment, with occasional deals reported to have been signed for ex-India materials in Europe this week.
Specifically, ex-Indian HDG (Z120) has been kept mainly stable at $820-830/mt FOB and, with low export volumes available in the last quarter, suppliers are not under pressure to adjust prices even as bids for small volumes are heard to be low, with buyers across geographies expecting further declines once business activity in China gathers pace. However, according to some sources, ex-India HDG offers have been heard through traders in southern Europe at around €835/mt CFR, which translates to around $850/mt FOB.
“Interest in imports is minimal. Distributors in the Gulf region, we hear, are fully stocked for now. Mills in western Europe are rolling back flat product prices and buyers are preferring to wait and watch for stability and are unwilling to resort to imports,” a source at ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel Limited told SteelOrbis.
At the same time, Indian suppliers of CRC have managed to sell several lots to Europe and the UK this week at around $760/mt FOB. According to European traders, ex-India CRC deal prices have been heard at €750/mt CFR.
“Indian mills also do not have many volumes for overseas sales. The fourth quarter of the fiscal year is normally low key in terms of exports and sellers are not getting into price adjustments. So, it’s a kind of stalemate between buyers and sellers. At least till such time the market gets a new direction following resumption of business in China and the new fiscal priorities of sellers,” another Indian source said.