Chile will allow companies to bid for licenses for the extraction of 400,000 tonnes of lithium, the country's mining ministry said on Thursday October 14.Prospective bidders have until December 21 to submit their proposals to extract the critical battery mineral.The tender opened on Thursday to both national and international bidding. It will "tender and award Special Operation Contracts (CEOL) by...Read More
Turkish steel mills are continuing to book deep-sea scrap at higher prices, market participants told Fastmarkets on Thursday October 14.A steel mill in the Iskenderun region booked a US cargo at $486 per tonne cfr on an HMS 1&2 (80:20) basis. However, the cargo composition was not clear at the time of publication.The previous deep-sea transactions, on Wednesday October 13, were concluded at $480 p...Read More
Diversified miner South32 is to buy a 45% interest in the Sierra Gorda copper mine in Chile from Sumitomo Metal Mining, the Australian company said on Thursday October 14.The acquisition is consistent with its strategy to reshape South32's portfolio for a low-carbon future, it said, producing materials critical for global decarbonization and the energy transition.Sierra Gorda, located in the Antof...Read More
Prices for imported basic pig iron into China increased over the past fortnight amid a shortage of material available from sellers, market sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday October 14. Significant volumes of pig iron sold from the CIS to China in recent months have led to reduced availability for fresh cargoes from the region.A limited number of offers for CIS-origin pig iron were heard in the...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday October 14 that are worth another look.Rio Tinto will test the use of biomass in place of coking coal in the steelmaking process in a small-scale pilot plant, in an attempt to cut the industry's carbon emissions through the use of...Read More
Mexican integrated steelmaker Altos Hornos de M?(C)xico (Ahmsa) has announced measures intended to reduce its consumption of natural gas after an increase in global prices.The company did not say whether the measure would affect its steel production, but it planned to gradually replace natural gas with gas generated in the steelmaking process.Ahmsa is a major steel producer and ferrous scrap consu...Read More
Indian hot-rolled coil export prices have increased by about $15-25 per tonne in the week to Thursday October 14 because of strong domestic demand, Fastmarkets has heard.Mills this week have concluded HRC export bookings at prices in the range of $860-870 per tonne fob, mainly to destinations in the Middle East. This was about $15-25 per tonne higher compared with previous bookings in the range of...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Northern Europe and Italy remained fairly stable on Thursday October 14 due to limited trading activity, sources have told Fastmarkets.European mills have been trading reduced volumes of coil and mainly holding back from making big deals. Prices have been under downward pressure from weak automotive sector demand, high stock levels at distributors and substan...Read More
LME base metals prices were little changed early on Friday October 15, but the strong gains seen during this LME Week support our long-held view that we are in a supercycle, with other factors, such as power cuts in China, high energy costs and logistics issues, also having an impact.* LME metals up by an average of 6.6% this week, with zinc up by 14%* Brent crude oil approaching $85 per barrel* E...Read More
The European Commission (EC) has extended anti-dumping duties on imports of wire rod from China until 2026, the Official Journal of the European Union said on October 13.The EC concluded that dumping would likely recur if the current measures were allowed to lapse. This followed an expiry review lodged by the European steel association, Eurofer, in July 2020 on behalf of...Read More
Turkish billet prices increased during the week ended October 14 because of the upturn in imported scrap costs, market participants told Fastmarkets.Turkish deep-sea scrap import prices have increased in the past week due to limited supply and firm demand. The most recent deep-sea scrap import trade was reported on Wednesday October 13, when a steel mill in the Izmir region paid $480 per tonne cfr...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday October 14 that are worth another look.Rio Tinto will test the use of biomass in place of coking coal in the steelmaking process in a small-scale pilot plant, in an attempt to cut the industry's carbon emissions through the use of...Read More
Demand for imported steel scrap in South Korea has continued to rise despite the closure of an electric-arc furnace (EAF) in the country and a sharp jump in prices from key supplier markets, sources said on Thursday October 14.An EAF owned by a medium-sized South Korean steelmaker has been closed due to an accident at the plant, Fastmarkets first heard on October 5. Sources told Fastmarkets that...Read More
Imported billet prices into Egypt increased in the week to Thursday October 14, but appetite for imports was still weak because of the "Advance Cargo Information" system (ACI), sources told Fastmarkets.The ACI system has been in effect since October 1 for all imports to Egyptian seaports. ACI is a World Customs Organization protocol that provides real-time information on transactions and operation...Read More
An overview of the specialty steel raw materials markets in Europe and their latest price moves.Janie Davies, Alex Cooks...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Northern Europe and Italy remained fairly stable on Thursday October 14 due to limited trading activity, sources have told Fastmarkets.European mills have been trading reduced volumes of coil and mainly holding back from making big deals. Prices have been under downward pressure from weak automotive sector demand, high stock levels at distributors and substan...Read More
Brazil-based multi-metal producer Nexa Resources has received an operating license for its Aripuan?? zinc-lead-copper project in Brazil, with commercial output scheduled to start next year, the company said on Wednesday October 13.According to Nexa, the license was granted by the Mato Grosso state environmental secretariat, Sema, on October 7. Mato Grosso is a state in the Brazilian midwestern reg...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday October 13 that are worth another look.Pipe producer Vallourec and Brazilian tube, bar and stainless steel distributor Grupo A??otubo announced a joint venture to supply steel tubes and pipes to industrial clients.Major zinc producer Nyrstar will cut production...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mixed at the 5pm close on Wednesday October 13, with zinc performing particularly well during the day's trading.The LME three-month price of zinc led the complex on Wednesday; it was up by 4.4% to $3,401.50 per tonne from $3,263 per tonne at Tuesday's close, after hitting an intraday high of $3,440 per tonne."LME fund managers turned bullish tow...Read More
Higher or more volatile prices for critical minerals such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, copper and rare earth elements could slow global progress toward a clean-energy future or make it more costly, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).In its World Energy Outlook report released on Wednesday October 13, the IEA said that price rallies for key minerals in 2021 could increase the costs o...Read More