Posted on 12 Apr 2024
Indian hot rolled coil imports dropped for the second consecutive month, contracting by 17.3% m-o-m to 189,774t in March, according to customs data accessed by Kallanish.
In February, Indian HRC imports had fallen by 22.6% on-month to 229,445t (see Kallanish passim).
The data considers HS codes with a heading of 7208. The most traded codes are 720837, 720838 and 720839. These include HR carbon steel coil and sheets having thickness of 10mm thick and over 600mm wide, and HRC coils and sheets, excluding stainless products.
Japan and South Korea were the top two suppliers for the second consecutive month.
Japan was India's biggest supplier, with 123,581t in March. This is a rise of 37.35% m-o-m from 89,972t in February. AMNS India and AMNS Khopoli were the main importers, receiving 63,034t and 29,287t respectively from Nippon Steel Trading. Kico Steel was the next biggest, importing 31,260t from JFE Shoji. Mumbai and Mundra were the main Indian ports for these shipments, while Kashima, Oita and Fukuyama were the main Japanese ports.
South Korea was the second largest supplier, with 45,399t. Shipments fell by 47.9% m-o-m from 87,098t in February. POSCO Maharashtra was the biggest importer with 38,362t, with material supplied by POSCO. Mumbai, Chennai and Mundra were the main Indian ports, and Kwangyang, Pohang and Dangjin were the main South Korean ports used.
China was the third largest supplier, with 20,795t. Kico steel and Man Industries were the main importers, with 5,192t and 6,457t respectively. Dao Fortune Hong Kong and Samsung CT were the biggest suppliers. Mumbai, Kandla and Chennai were the main Indian ports, and Bayuquan and Tianjin were the main Chinese ports used.
In February, the top three countries India imported HRC from were Japan, South Korea and Hong Kong.
According to Global Trade Tracker and Cybex data, India’s April 2023 to March 2024 total HRC import quantity was 2.79 million tonnes. This is a rise of 34.1% year-on-year from 2.08mt in the year ago period. Exports contracted sharply by 46.87% month-on-month to 252,642 tonnes in March, the first time HRC exports have contracted in the last three months (see separate article).
Source:Kallanish
