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.
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.