Seaborne pellet prices fell, tracking a slide in the Argus ICX 62pc seaborne index, as blast furnace restrictions in north China curbed iron ore demand.
The Argus 64pc Fe, 3pc Al pellet was assessed at $104.50/dry metric tonne (dmt) this week, down by $2.50/dmt from last week. The 2pc Al variant was assessed at $106.50/dmt.
There were no deals concluded during the assessment week, with mills continuing to prefer lump as direct-charge material at current prices.
A cargo of JSPL Indian pellet was offered at $106/dmt today. A cargo of BRPL Indian pellet for October delivery was offered at $109-110/dmt. Ardent pellet was offered at $109/dmt, with bids at $100-102/dmt.
Some buyers are waiting for pellet prices to bottom out before making fresh purchases. Concerns about more pellet supplies entering China from Brazilian producer Vale in October-December also curbed demand.
"We will not offer cargoes until China comes back from the national day holiday," said the senior executive of an east India-based pellet producer.
Indian pellet with 3pc Al was sold at Yn910/wmt (seaborne equivalent of $113.50/dmt) at Shandong port today. Similar cargoes were sold at Yn930/wmt, Yn950/wmt and Yn955/wmt in Tianjin yesterday, and at Yn945/wmt in Tangshan and Yn950/wmt in Qingdao on 18 September. Indian pellet with less than 1.57pc Al was offered at Yn990/wmt at Caofeidian, while a cargo with 1.49pc Al was offered at Yn1,020/wmt at Rizhao port today.
Pellet demand and prices may rise as Tangshan restrictions, which started today, sharply reduce the use of fines, with sintering completely suspended for an indefinite period at most mills.
