Rod prices start falling

The prices of the rod, a key construction material, have started to fall in the capital’s retail markets.

Traders said rod prices declined by Tk 500-2,000 per tonne this week compared to the last week. On Wednesday, rods of various brands were sold at Tk 75,000 to Tk 81,500 per tonne.

According to the state-run Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB), the price of 60-grade rod decreased 1.24 per cent in a week while the cost of 40-grade came down by 1.92 per cent in the same period.

Per tonne 60-grade MS rod, or better quality, was sold between Tk 77,500 and Tk 81,500, which was Tk 79,500-81,500 last week. On the other hand, 40-grade MS rod was being sold at Tk 75,500 to Tk 77,500 per ton, which was earlier on sale for Tk 77,500 to Tk 78,5000, TCB data showed.

However, the figure showed that 60-grade MS rod price increased by 28.74 per cent this year, while the price of 40-grade rose by 33.04 per cent compared to the previous year.

Traders said there are around 100 rod manufacturers in the country. Of them, Bangladesh Steel Re-rolling Mills (BSRM), Bandar Steel Industries Ltd (BSI), Abul Khair Steel (AKS), Rahim Steel Mills (RSM), Kabir Steel Re-Rolling Mills (KSRM), Ratanpur Rerolling Mills (RSRM) and Anwar Ispat Ltd are the major players in the markets who meet 60 per cent local demand.

Besides, a few other companies like GPH Ispat, Kamal Steel and Re-Rolling Mills (KSM), RRM (Rani Re-rolling Mills Ltd), HKG Steel Mills Ltd, SAS Group (Shafiul Alam Special Steel Mills Ltd), Vikrampur Steel Ltd and SSRM (Shahriar Steel Mills Ltd) meet rest of 40 per cent demand, they added.

Talking to The Business Post, Proprietor of M/S New Akbar Steel House at Tanti Bazar of Old Dhaka Amir Hosain said rod prices started to decrease this week and might fall further.

“Rod price soared in the country due to Covid-19. The virus situation has become normal and we hope that the market will become stable soon,” he added.

Amir said the low prices had boosted sales, noting that BSRM brand cost Tk 81,500 per tonne, SSRM Tk 77,000 and Bandar Steel Tk75,500.

The Proprietor of Kamal Steel and Re-Rolling Mills Md Sheikh Kamal said that Bangladeshi rod manufacturers have to depend on imports since the country has no iron mine. So, the prices also depend on the international market.

Kamal said they import raw materials from countries, including Brazil, UK, USA, New Zealand, Australia, Canada and Italy.

Real Estate and Housing Association of Bangladesh (REHAB) Vice-President Kamal Mahmud said Bangladesh needed a regulatory body to fix market prices of rods. “Traders fix and re-fix the prices whenever they want, hurting the real estate business. Many of our projects became stuck because of unstable rod prices,” he said.