Amid global battering of commodity prices, the first signs of an upward movement in steel prices have shown up, with some semi-finished and long-product prices rising by Rs 1,000-2,000 a tonne in the domestic market.
The prices of TMT bars, billets and pencil ingots, which are small ingots produced in mini-steel plants, have particularly seen a rise in prices. Prices of secondary steel products, which account for around 55 per cent of the country’s total steel output, are on the upswing.
Bipin Vohra, the chairman of the Kolkata-based SPS group, which produces 0.5 million tonnes of TMT bars, said the maximum retail price (MRP) of TMT bars has moved up by around Rs 2,000 a tonne to Rs 37,200. Billet prices, at Rs 29,000 a tonne, are also higher by the same amount.
Vohra said the increase was because prices have bottomed out. Besides, a revival in the construction segment has spurred prices, he said, adding, “Whatever the demand in the domestic market, international prices are still lower.”
However, primary producers are yet to raise prices. Public-sector, long-product major Rashtriya Ispat Nigam (RINL) cut prices by Rs 8,500 a tonne in November. It has an inventory of 6.8 lakh tonnes against a normal level of 2.5 lakh tonnes.
C G Patil, director (commercial), RINL, said secondary producers have increased prices and added that pencil ingot prices too had risen by around Rs 1,500 a tonne in the wholesale market over the last three days. “This should be interpreted as a positive sign because if prices continue to be increased by secondary producers, even we can raise prices,” he said.