Ex-India hot dip galvanized (HDG) coil prices have been cut drastically by large local mills, but deals have failed to materialize even despite additional discounts in the face of the stiff competition and availability of cheaper alternatives for buyers in the Middle East and the EU, SteelOrbis learned from trade and industry circles on Friday, August 16.
Sources said that ex-India HDG (Z120) prices have been cut sharply by $20/mt to the range of $740-750/mt FOB, and some sellers are heard to be offering additional $10-20/mt discounts, but no deals have been confirmed, with buyers having multiple cheaper options including ex-China material.
They said that, not only was demand in key destinations weak and distributors in Europe cautious in restocking with imports, but a lot of ex-China volumes are also on offer in most markets, offering buyers several alternative cheaper options, and the price reductions from Indian mills were not viewed as being sufficient.
“There is still a very wide disparity between bids and offers. We hear some buyers from the Middle East submitting bids in the range of $610-630/mt on FOB basis based on current ex-China offers. Despite offering additional discounts, Indian mills cannot face this competition and hence are pushed to the sidelines of the export trade,” a source at a local private mill told SteelOrbis.
“The mood among sellers is very bad as prices are falling week on week. Buyers, on the other hand, are preferring to wait for further lower prices before committing a trade. Reports of the European Commission launching dumping investigations into imported flat products are also making sellers very nervous,” they added.