GMS weekly report on INDIAN ShipBreaking industry for WEEK 32 of 2011:

Hung Out To Dry:

Further falls at the start of the week eventually resulted in levels from India coming off by about USD 30 per tonne over the course of the last couple of weeks, resulting in a particularly volatile time that has rocked the local recycling industry.

Even though the Indian market has been known for its volatility, such heavy falls in prices, especially after the surge of July, has left the plans of may ship owners (of committing their units at strong levels) in tatters.

Consequently, a continued dearth of fixtures (as compared to busy times of the recent past) continues to cast its shadow on the local sector. One sale did manage to register at the previously red-hot levels though, with the converted container SINO NORTH receiving a price of USD 540/LT LDT a level that would certainly not be there today locally.

It may be convenient to attribute this downturn to the recent slump in the global stock markets as well as the Indian Rupee, which has gone through a roller coaster time over the last few weeks as it strengthened and depreciated (last week) against the US Dollar. The oily element bringing a sense of security to the local psyche is now-steady local steel plate price.

As such, some would probably consider the current drop in levels as a logical correction as India had soared ahead of all other markets with a sense of unexplained urgency and the drop in prices was an overdue correction at realistic levels.

After the pandemonium caused by the crash of 200S when 100s/LT LDT rumbled from prices by the week, it is perhaps wise that end buyers take a breather from the recent boom in activity and monitor the markets for a while before they get back to business.

Source: Steel Guru (Sourced from GMS Weekly). 16 August 2011.

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