India's June avg containerized shredded scrap prices remain strong above $400/t mark

Indian ferrous scrap import prices cooled off somewhat in June with the onset of the monsoon season, but prices for containerized shredded material remained relatively strong above the $400 a ton mark CFR East Coast port.

　The rapid increase in scrap import prices into India seen last month cooled off to a degree, with containerised shredded index losing $3.50 a ton from May’s pricing (CFR Nhava Sheva port).

The second week of the month brought about a large correction, with containerised shredded index falling $8 a ton in the space of a week. Finished steel pricing did not keep pace with scrap prices, meaning a correction was largely inevitable as the euphoria surrounding the election results subsided.

Steel mills were gearing up for the onset of the monsoon season in the country, a period in which they are traditionally forced to cut back production due to a lack of demand, particularly from construction activity. The dramatic fall in scrap pricing in the US domestic market also meant buyers had little incentive to pay inflated prices in comparison to the global markets.

As a result of these factors, scrap prices were mostly flat for the rest of the month, fluctuating between $400 a ton and $403a ton. A depreciation in the rupee also served to dent the buying power of Indian mills.