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[India Domestic] India’s domestic steel market remained largely stable with some prices edging lower while finished steel prices were mostly unchanged. Buying remained cautious keeping near-term demand subdued, while supply remained adequate. Mandi HMS 1&2 (80:20) down by 2.08USD/tonne (200INR/tonne) to 388.18USD/tonne (37,200INR/tonne) delivered Mandi. Rebar prices up by 3.13USD/tonne (300INR/tonne) to 546.80USD/tonne (52,400INR/tonne) EXW Mumbai. While Raipur rebar unchanged at 533.20USD/tonne (51,100INR/tonne) EXW Raipur. PDRI sponge iron flat at 307USD/tonne (29,500INR/tonne) EXW Raipur for the third consecutive day. Bellary PDRI sponge iron prices edged down with buyers bidding around 319.29-320.33USD/tonne (30,600–30,700INR/tonne). Some deals were concluded at these levels, while sellers with good order books were unwilling to reduce their offers below 323.46USD/tonne (31,000INR/tonne). A few sellers were offering as high as 326.59-328.68USD/tonne (31,300–31,500INR/tonne), according to sources.

Tosyalı SULB, a joint venture between Turkish steelmaker Tosyalı Holding and Libya United Steel Company for Iron and Steel Industry, plans to attract around $2.5 billion in investment for a direct reduced iron (DRI) project near Benghazi, with commercial production targeted for early 2028. The complex will comprise three DRI production units with combined annual capacity of 8.1 million mt once fully completed, with the first phase set at around 2.7 million mt/year — natural gas supply arrangements for this phase are already in place, alongside a dedicated power facility under development. Chairman Ahmed Gadallah said about 90% of output is targeted for export, mainly to Europe, while the remainder will supply rebar and steel pipes for Libya's domestic market.

There have been price changes since last week: rebar (505→510 USD/metric ton), slab (485→490 USD/metric ton), HRC (525→528 USD/metric ton), and billet (480→485->480->478 USD/metric ton). This is due to manufacturers trying to gauge the market on how they will react. However, it seems that it is the billet that is reacting. When prices were raised, it turned out that Chinese steel products, especially billet, experienced a decline. Ultimately, the prices in Indonesia had no choice but to lower. However, now that buyers' expectations are 5-10 USD/ton lower than the manufacturers', the manufacturers are now trying to reduce billet prices. Let's see what happens in the market next week, but if buyers have a stronger market position, then prices are likely to drop next week as well.