For the past six months or so, the Indian steel sector has been buffeted about by one negative development or another.
In the throes of a mining scam leading to a clampdown on iron ore mining and a subsequent shortage of good quality ore, the industry now finds itself battling possible higher import bills due to a falling Indian rupee.
And the weight of the rupee against the dollar has a direct bearing on the cost of steelmaking.
The cash price of steel billet fell 12.7 percent on May 25, 2012 to $379 per metric ton on the LME, making it the day’s biggest mover. The 3-month price of steel billet closed at $380 per metric ton. Following a couple days of improvement, prices fell by 12.5 percent on the LME.
Chinese steel prices were mixed for the day. The price of iron ore 58% fines from India hit a high price of CNY 850 ($134) and a low price of CNY 840 ($132) per dry metric ton. The price of Chinese slab fell 0.5 percent to CNY 4,040 ($637) per metric ton. The price of Chinese HRC remained steady at CNY 4,120 ($650) per metric ton.
The US HRC futures contract spot price declined 0.2 percent to $662 per short ton. The US HRC futures contract 3-month price saw little movement last Friday, closing out around $645 per short ton.
The week’s biggest mover on the Raw Steels MMI® was the 3-month price of steel billet, which saw an 8.5 percent decline on the LME to $421 per metric ton. This week marked the third in a row of declining prices for the metal. Closing out the third week of declining prices, the cash price of steel billet dropped by 7.7 percent on the LME, finishing at $419 per metric ton.
(Why the steel price drops? Where are prices of steel headed for the rest of 2012?)
Chinese steel prices, meanwhile, were mixed for the week.
The week’s biggest mover on the Raw Steels MMI® was the 3-month price of steel billet, which saw a 8.5 percent decline on the LME to $421 per metric ton. This week marked the third in a row of declining prices for the metal. Closing out the third week of declining prices, the cash price of steel billet dropped by 7.7 percent on the LME, finishing at $419 per metric ton.
Chinese steel prices were mixed for the week. The price of iron ore 58% fines from India hit a high price of CNY 850 ($134) and a low price of CNY 840 ($133) per dry metric ton. Chinese HRC prices were off slightly at CNY 4,130 ($653) per metric ton, down from CNY 4,200 ($664) a week ago. At CNY 1,780 ($281) per metric ton, the week finished with no movement for Chinese coking coal. For the third week in a row, the price of Chinese slab dropped, falling 2.9 percent to CNY 4,090 ($647) per metric ton.
With a 1.5 percent decrease, the 3-month price of US HRC futures contract closed the week at $655 per short ton. The spot price of US HRC futures contract fell 0.7 percent to $665 per short ton after rising 0.8 percent the week before. After a 0.2 percent decline, US shredded scrap closed out the week at $432 per short ton.
Korean steel prices were flat for the week. Prices for Korean steel scrap remained constant, closing the week at KRW 440,000 ($376) per metric ton. Korean pig iron remained essentially flat from the previous week at KRW 790,000 ($675) per metric ton.
The Raw Steels MMI® collects and weights 13 global steel and raw material price points to provide a unique view into global steel price trends. For more information on the Raw Steels MMI®, how it’s calculated or how your company can use the index, please drop us a note at: info (at) agmetalminer (dot) com.
The steel billet 3-month price closed up May 23, 2012 at $421 per metric ton, halting two days of weakening prices on the LME with a 2.4 percent shift. Also on the LME, the cash price of steel billet rose 2.2 percent to $419 per metric ton.
Chinese steel prices were flat for the day. The price of iron ore 58% fines from India hit a high price of CNY 850 ($134) and a low price of CNY 840 ($133) per dry metric ton. Chinese HRC stayed flat at around CNY 4,130 ($653) per metric ton. The price of Chinese coking coal remained essentially flat at CNY 1,780 ($281) per metric ton.
The US HRC futures contract 3-month price has been on the decline for seven days and is now at $655 per short ton. The spot price of US HRC futures contract saw little movement yesterday at $665 per short ton.
Closing at CNY 3,950 ($624) per metric ton on the Construction MMI®, Chinese H-beam steel finished as the week’s biggest mover with a 3.2 percent decline. The Chinese low price of 62% Australian iron ore fines fell 1.9 percent over the past week to CNY 1,030 ($162) per dry metric ton. This was the third week in a row of declining prices. At CNY 4,180 ($661) per metric ton, the price of Chinese rebar finished the week down 1.6 percent. US shredded scrap fell 0.2 percent over the past week to $432 per short ton.
Prices for Chinese aluminum bar remained constant, closing the week at CNY 14,050 ($2,222) per metric ton. Following a steady week, prices for European 1050 aluminum closed flat at EUR 2,327 ($3,055) per metric ton.
After a two percent decline, weekly US Midwest bar fuel surcharge closed out the week at $0.53 per short ton. Weekly US Gulf Coast bar fuel surcharge prices were off slightly at $0.53 per short ton, down from $0.54 a week ago. The price of weekly US Rocky Mountain bar fuel surcharge declined 0.6 percent over the past week, settling at $0.56 per short ton.
The Construction MMI® collects and weights 9 metal price points used within the construction industry to provide a unique view into construction industry price trends. For more information on the Construction MMI®, how it’s calculated or how your company can use the index, please drop us a note at: info (at) agmetalminer (dot) com.
Following a three-day flat streak, the price of Chinese HRC dropped by 0.9 percent on May 8, 2012.
Meanwhile, Chinese coking coal prices remained essentially flat. For the fifth day in a row, the price of Chinese slab also stayed pat at CNY 4,350 ($691) per metric ton. The price of iron ore 58% fines from India hit a low price of CNY 855 ($135) and a high price of CNY 865 ($137) per dry metric ton.
On the LME, the steel billet cash price held steady around $480 per metric ton. The steel billet 3-month price saw little movement on Tuesday on the LME, closing out around $485 per metric ton.
For the fifth consecutive day, the 3-month price of US HRC futures held flat at $670 per short ton. The US HRC futures contract spot price saw little change in its price yesterday at $665 per short ton.
On April 27, 2012, the day’s biggest mover was the steel billet cash price, which saw a 1.1 percent increase on the LME to $470 per metric ton. This increase comes after the price fell for the two previous days. After a one percent increase, steel billet 3-month prices finished the day on the LME at $485 per metric ton.
Chinese steel closed mixed last Friday. The high and low prices of iron ore 58% fines from India kept under $140 per dry metric ton. Friday saw the price of Chinese slab shift 0.7 percent after three quiet days. For the fifth day in a row, the price of Chinese coking coal remained essentially flat.
The US HRC futures contract 3-month price stayed steady at $670 per short ton. The spot price of US HRC futures contract saw little change in its price at $685 per short ton.
The cash price of steel billet saw the biggest increase at 0.6 percent on the LME, finishing at $475 per metric ton for April 24, 2012. The LME steel billet 3-month price held steady on Tuesday, remaining around $490 per metric ton.
Chinese steel prices closed flat for the day. Iron ore 58% fines from India ranged from CNY 870 ($137) to CNY 880 ($139) per dry metric ton. The price of Chinese coking coal saw little movement at CNY 1,780 ($282) per metric ton. The price of Chinese slab ended up even on Tuesday at CNY 4,390 ($696) per metric ton.
Tuesday saw the US HRC futures contract spot price shift 0.3 percent to $685 per short ton after a couple of still days. At $673 per short ton, the US HRC futures contract 3-month price held fast after a two-day decline.
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