Ex-India hot dip galvanized (HDG) coil prices have been kept stable and, even though a few large mills were heard to be offering discounts, but no deals could be confirmed with buyers from Europe seeking even lower prices owing to insufficient demand, SteelOrbis learned from trade and industry circles on Thursday, August 8.
Sources said that, while ex-India HDG prices have officially been maintained at $760-770/mt FOB, the same as two weeks ago, at least two large mills are reported to have offered discounts of $10-15/mt in response to enquiries from Portugal and Romania.
However, according to the sources, no deals could be confirmed despite the discounted offers, with the bids submitted being even lower. They said that buyers from these two countries had negotiated hard, citing insufficient local demand, and were willing to conclude deals only at the “right price” but the talks seem to have fallen through.
In the meantime, at least two in trade circles said that a small-volume deal for 2,000 mt was heard for delivery to the UAE at around $755/mt FOB, but this was not confirmed by others in the market.
Meanwhile, offers for ex-India CRC have been reported at around $670-675/mt FOB, the same as two weeks ago. Offers in southern Europe have been voiced at $730/mt CFR, standing in line with offers from Taiwan and South Korea, but higher by $10/mt as compared to ex-Japan CRC offers, according to sources.
“We are not in exports at the moment. But we are hearing very hard bargaining by buyers in Europe and the Middle East. The latter are making enquiries more in the nature of testing the market but are cautious in accepting current prices. It is common for prospective buyers to cite weak domestic demand and they would restock only at bottom levels which are unviable for local mills,” a source at a private mill told SteelOrbis.