Ex-India hot dip galvanized (HDG) coil prices have been maintained unchanged at lower levels after the price cuts seen earlier, but are still insufficient to attract any deals in the face of declining flat product prices and stiffer global competition, leading to a wide bid-offer disparity, SteelOrbis learned from trade and industry circles on Thursday, August 22.
Ex-India HDG (grade Z120) are unchanged at $740-750/mt FOB, but bids have also moved lower, following the still much lower Chinese HDG offers at $600/mt FOB and below for this grade, resulting in deals from India remaining in limbo.
“The overall decline in global prices is increasing the bid-offer disparity and buyers have multiple cheaper sourcing options. We do not see Indian mills having any scope for further price reductions as margins at the current levels are either negligible or even negative for some producers,” the representative of an Indian mill said.
“We hear that even ex-China suppliers at sharply reduced price levels are finding it tough to sell in Asia and the Middle East. A lower price is insufficient to drive sales when aggregate demand remains weak. The steady lowering of ex-China prices has a direct correlation with lower domestic demand, which is unlikely to change, and hence more ex-China material will continue to be pushed for exports. We do not expect an improvement in price for Indian mills. Our export allocations are low and will need to be adjusted further for the next quarter,” the source said.