Ex-India pellet prices have inched lower, threatening to breach the $100/mt CFR mark, with buyers retreating from the market, showing no interest in restocking amid weak finished steel prices in China, while sellers have been seen to be withholding offers, resulting in silent trade conditions, SteelOrbis learned from trade and industry circles on Friday, August 23.
Ex-India pellet prices are down $2/mt to the range of $100-103/mt CFR, with buyers largely shifting to lower-priced fines, while Indian sellers have been focusing on sales in the domestic market, where prices were down but are still better than export realizations.
Sources said that, even though there has been some softening of local prices, they still offer $14-15/mt higher realizations compared to overseas sales, affording domestic pellet plants some room to hold back ex-India offers.
“Everyone is waiting for some price improvement. There have not been any export sales almost for two weeks now,” a member of the Pellet Manufacturers’ Association of India (PMAI) said.
“We hear that port stocks in China are down an estimated 0.4 million mt but still there is no restocking activity, indicating a weakening of raw material demand as a fall-out of the sustained declines in finished steel margins in China. This gives rise to the pessimistic outlook that ex-India prices may soon see a sub-$100/mt CFR level,” he said.