Why Indian Pig Iron Market Observed Moderate Response And Price Change?

In India, the Pig Iron market reported a mixed response with slightly low demand. Despite the softened Steel prices of mid-sized Steel mills, the Pig Iron prices have surged by Rs 500/ton in the central and eastern regions, week-on-week. However, over the last 4-5 days, these prices have remained stable across regions.

In this article, we will explore the market performance and the factors affecting the Pig Iron market in India.

Pig Iron Market Overview

• Reasons Behind Pig Iron Price Fluctuations- Pig Iron price fluctuations can be attributed to various reasons, such as limited Steel demand, an unclear market outlook, and major plants are holding offers, Ofbusiness learned from industry participants.

• Limited Steel Demand In India- The Billet prices of mid-sized Steel mills have registered a decline in the past week by Rs 200-500/ton. As a result, the demand for Pig Iron has also weakened on floated offers. However, due to sufficient orders with suppliers, especially in the eastern region, the plants have kept Pig Iron prices stable.

• Major Plants Holding Offers- The major merchant Pig Iron producers based in the south, west and eastern regions have maintained prices for the second half of April 2023. As a result, other producers are also keeping their prices stable with a slight change in offers as per the spot demand in the market.

What Is The Market Price Of Pig Iron?

• Steel-grade Pig Iron- The latest offers for Steel-grade Pig Iron through Durgapur-based mills are reported to be around Rs 43,300-43,700/ton ex-works in east India, while in Raipur (central India) the prices stand around Rs 43,000-43,500/ton. The prices in Durgapur and Raipur have increased by Rs 500-700/ton, week-on-week.

• Foundry-grade Pig Iron- The Foundry-grade Pig Iron prices have remained slightly changed for the second consecutive week and reported fluctuations of Rs 100-300, week-on-week. The current offers range from Rs 45,500-45,800/ton in Ludhiana, Rs 45,800-46,000/ton in Delhi, and Rs 48,000-48,300/ton in Ahmedabad, on a delivered basis.

Market Outlook

Market experts expect the prices of Pig Iron to remain volatile or report a slight downtrend considering not much improvement in demand in the prevailing prices and declining prices of raw materials such as coking coal and iron ore globally. The import price of Australian coking coal dropped by $25/ton, week-on-week.

OFB’s Insight

Since there is no clarity for the price movement of Steel, the demand for Pig Iron has continued as per the requirement from the Ingot, and Billet manufacturers. This has resulted in a balance in demand-supply for Pig Iron.

Read more: Week 16 Of 2023: What Was The Performance Of Steel Industry In India?

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