The three-month copper price on the London Metal Exchange held on to support above $5,200 per tonne during morning trading on Thursday April 30, while a fresh cancellation of 10,000 tonnes did little to support aluminium futures prices. The LME three-month copper price was recently at $5,251.50 per tonne, but has traded as high as $5,294.50 per tonne over the morning, while turnover remained thin...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices increased slightly on Thursday April 30 on rising futures following the release of the latest steel purchasing managers' index (PMI).Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,410-3,440 yuan ($481-486) per tonne, up by 10 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing) - weekly assessment: 3,390-3,440 yuan per tonne, down by 30 yuan per tonne from last FridayChina's steel PMI for Ap...Read More
Base metals prices and global equity indices were holding up in high ground this morning, Thursday April 30, helped by the US Federal Open Market Committee's message of continued support, an expansion in manufacturing activity at China's larger factories, a stronger oil price and because state-sponsored inventory buying in China bodes well for the metals. Asian-Pacific and pre-market major western...Read More
Demand for Umicore's products dropped significantly in the first quarter of 2020 due to the Covid-19 outbreak and the producer anticipates global automotive production to slump by 25% this year. The "coronavirus-induced recession" is "significantly affecting demand in cobalt and specialty materials and precious metals chemistry," the Belgium-headquartered technology company said in its results sta...Read More
Switzerland-based trader-producer Glencore has cut its production guidance for cobalt and ferro-chrome for 2020 in response to expected business interruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. The company now expects to produce 26,000-30,000 tonnes of cobalt in 2020, down from guidance of 25,000-33,000 tonnes. Glencore had already earlier cut its cobalt production guidance for Katanga mine to...Read More
Minor metal market participants do not expect the Yunnan provincial government incentives for commercial stockpiling of non-ferrous metals to immediately boost indium or germanium prices due to the potentially limited share allocated to minor metals and the weak demand outlook. The Yunnan provincial government called for leading enterprises to stockpile non-ferrous metals including copper, al...Read More
A summary of Russian multi-metal miner Nornickel's production results for the first quarter of 2020. In brief: Despite a drop in base metals production in the first quarter of 2020, company chief executive officer Sergey Dyachenko said the Covid-19 outbreak has not had any adverse material impact on the company's operating results so far. The company's copper output decreased 9% year on...Read More
Concerns over the possibility of lower Indonesian stainless steel supply emerged over the past week after local media reported that four people at the Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park - where a major producer is located - had tested positive for the Covid-19 virus. PT Indonesia Tsingshan Stainless Steel, which is located in the industrial park, did not issue any new offers this week, sources sai...Read More
Demand for heavy melting scrap (HMS) imports in Taiwan softened this week, with Taiwanese buyers cutting down on purchases after stocking up in the past few weeks.Transactions for containerized cargoes of HMS 1&2 (80:20) from the United States West Coast were being concluded at increasingly lower prices throughout the week.They went from $224 per tonne cfr and $225 per tonne cfr in the first two d...Read More
Scrap buyers in Vietnam are maintaining their wait-and-see approach to get a better idea of price directions after major holidays in the country and in Japan, a major supplier.No confirmed transactions were heard this week.Bids for bulk cargoes of Japanese H2 scrap were heard at $230 per tonne cfr Vietnam, while offers were at $236-238 per tonne cfr.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel s...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were lower this morning. S&P 500 futures were down 60 points in pre-opening trade. Amazon dropped $125.00 to $2,349.00 after lowering second quarter guidance. Apple plunged $8.80 to $285.00 after declining to offer fiscal third quarter guidance. Visa lost $2.03 to $176.69 after lowering second quarter guidance.Amgen gained $3.78 to $243.00 after reporting higher than...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday April 29 that are worth another look.Export prices for Japan-origin plate and structural (P&S) grades of ferrous scrap rose by ?500 ($5) per tonne week on week on April 29, with tighter supplies over recent weeks keeping the values up, sources have told Fastmarkets.Brazilian mining company Vale expects to find a potential invest...Read More
Malaysia Smelting Corp (MSC), the world's second-largest tin exporter, has resumed production following a hiatus related to the Covid-19 pandemic, the company told Fastmarkets."At the moment, MSC has commenced its smelting and mining activities and is operating at approximately 50% capacity," company spokeswoman Mei-Lynn Keow said.MSC had been under a Malaysian government lockdown that began on Ma...Read More
Brazilian mining company Vale expects to find a potential investor to exit its South Pacific nickel asset Vale New Caledonia (VNC) in the next one to two months, base metals director Mark Travers said in a conference call on Wednesday April 29.The company confirmed it was looking to divest from the business in December last year, while talks with interested parties began in November, Travers added...Read More
The supply and demand balance in both nickel and copper markets is expected at a surplus this year despite lower output due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Brazilian mining company Vale said in its first-quarter earnings report on Tuesday April 28. Supply of finished nickel, for example, is forecast to have declined by 12,000-15,000 tonnes in the first quarter because of coronavirus-related closures and...Read More
A summary of Peru-based miner Buenaventura's production results for the first quarter of 2020, as stated in its production report on Wednesday April 29.In brief Zinc and copper output increased year on year in the first three months of 2020 despite lower volumes reported in March due to the Peruvian lockdown enforced to contain the spread of the Covid-19 virus. The...Read More
An overview of the minor metals markets and the reasons for their latest price moves.Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday April 29 that are worth another look.Export prices for Japan-origin plate and structural (P&S) grades of ferrous scrap rose by ?500 ($5) per tonne week on week on April 29, with tighter supplies over recent weeks keeping the values up, sources have told Fastmarkets.Brazilian mining company Vale expects to find a potential invest...Read More
Turkish steel mills continued to stay away from the deep-sea scrap market on Wednesday April 29, holding out for lower prices, sources told Fastmarkets.After about 10 days of silence, on April 27 one Turkish steel mill booked a Baltic Sea cargo at $242 per tonne cfr for 26,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20) and $252 per tonne cfr for 6,00 tonnes of bonus scrap, sending the daily scrap in...Read More
Export prices for Japan-origin plate and structural (P&S) grades of ferrous scrap rose by ?500 ($5) per tonne week on week on Wednesday April 29, with tighter supplies over recent weeks keeping the values up, sources have told Fastmarkets.Japanese scrap collection has decreased over recent months, and was now affecting both prime and obsolete grades of material.Plant closures among car manufactur...Read More