[Ferro-alloys.com] In mid September, ferrosilicon producers had normal operation in China, with some furnaces newly into operation in China’s Ningxia Hui region. Most producers said they had few or none spot materials, except that a small number of larger enterprises had some spot supplies. The main stream ex-work tax-inclusive prices remained steady, with FeSi75# being RMB5,900-5,950/mt(USD961-969/mt) and FeSi72# being RMB5,600-5,650/mt(USD912-920/mt).

Export market ran low this week. Foreign ferrosilicon buyers tried hard to slash the purchase price. Export price of ferrosilicon ranged from the lowest of USD1,350/mt to the highest of USD1,400/mt FOB at Tianjin port.

FeSi75# rose to €1,140-1,170/mt from the previous €1,125-1,150/mt in European markets and 98-100 cents/lb in US market. One major European ferrosilicon exporter-Norway exported 25,788 mt of ferrosilicon in August 2014, of which 11,225 mt were exported to Germany. Although demand was strong in India, ferrosilicon prices remained steady in Indian and Bhutan. Ex-work price of FeSi75# remained Rs76,500/mt (USD1,258/mt) in Guwahati, Ex-work price of Bhutan FeSi75# stayed at Rs 78,500/mt (    USD1,291/mt). Export prices of FeSi70-75# remained USD1,380-1,390/mt CIF at Germany and Italy ports. Contract prices of FeSi75# remained USD1,360-1,380/mt CIF at Japanese ports. FeSi75# was USD1,250-1,300/mt in South Korea.

Analysis: Affected by National Day holiday, some steel mills were likely to advance bids for ferrosilicon for October delivery in China. Based on the ex-works prices of steel products of mainstream steel mills, slight decline was the basic tone. With the approaching of cooler days, ferrosilicon producers were expected to operate more furnaces. Purchase prices of October ferrosilicon were likely to remain flat. 

• [Editor:Phillip.Feng]