Higher electricity prices have added to the production costs of chrome alloy, especially low-carbon ferro-chrome, during the week to Tuesday October 12, at a time when the market was already short of material with prices at multi-year highs.Fastmarkets assessed ferro-chrome 0.10% C, average 65-70% Cr, delivered Europe at $3.05-3.25 per lb Cr on Tuesday, up 7-15 cents (+3.6%) from $2.90-3.18 per lb...Read More
Europe now has the world's most expensive silicon, with prices there and in the United States reaching new all-time highs just as prices have begun to trend down in China - where a silicon shortage started the global uptrend.The West and China moved in opposite directions in Fastmarkets assessments for the week to Friday October 8, with Europe's price for standard silicon at its highest level sinc...Read More
A lack of vehicle-charging infrastructure, along with constraints on the supply of battery raw materials, were the major challenges to growth in the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs), the chief executive officer of diversified mining company Eurasian Resources Group (ERG) has said.Lithium, cobalt, nickel, manganese and graphite are critical raw materials for the production of battery cathodes an...Read More
Decarbonization is expected to increase base-metal costs in the coming years, panelists said at the LME Week seminar in London.Initial investments in new technology and infrastructure to produce more sustainable metals will push production costs higher, said Geordie Wilkes, head of research at Sucden Financial."We'll go through a period of high cost which will increase the cost curve," Wilkes said...Read More
Major European zinc producers intend to significantly raise the annual contractual premiums in 2022, citing higher production costs and strong demand, Fastmarkets has learned during LME Week 2021.Offers were likely to be made close to or higher than $200 per tonne, nearly double the levels seen in 2021, which came in a range of $95-110 per tonne.The offer levels were also higher than the current s...Read More
A lack of silicon in the market has vaulted aluminium primary foundry alloy (PFA) ingot to fresh-all time highs across Europe.Fastmarkets assessed the aluminium primary foundry alloy, silicon 7 ingot premium, ddp Germany at a new record high of $800-900 per tonne on Friday October 8, up by 45% from $550-620 per tonne on September 10.Fastmarkets also assessed the monthly aluminium primary foundry a...Read More
Spot premiums for P1020 aluminium ingot into main Japanese Ports (MJP) have struggled to find clear direction since the settlement of fourth-quarter MJP premiums on Tuesday October 5, despite quarterly negotiations ending on a strong note.A combination of slow buying, poor LME spreads and a closed arbitrage into China capped the rise in spot premiums since the settlement.Fastmarkets reported a fou...Read More
Domestic and imported steel reinforcing bar prices in the United States were sideways on Wednesday October 13, and market participants expect it to stay that way for a few more weeks at least.Fastmarkets' assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), fob mill US was $49.25 per hundredweight ($985 per short ton) on Wednesday October 13, unchanged since August 11 but up by 65.55% from $29.75 per cwt...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States dipped slightly once again - remaining under $97 per hundredweight ($1,940 per short ton) for the fourth consecutive business day - while spot tonnages remained scarce and contract negotiations for 2022 supply were said to be in the final stretch.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $96.79 per cwt ($1,935.80 per t...Read More
The United States Commerce Department has finalized anti-dumping duties on cut-to-length carbon-quality steel plate products from South Korea that it said was sold in the US at less than normal value from February 1, 2019, through January 31, 2020.In a Federal Register notice published on Wednesday October 13, Commerce affirmed its June 25...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-dipped galvanized coil decreased across Europe in the week ended Wednesday October 13 due to weaker demand from distributors and the automotive sector, sources told Fastmarkets.Sources expect distributors to return to the market in November. While the majority of European distributors have sufficient stocks to last until the year-end, they will need to restock for the first...Read More
Fastmarkets published its Commonwealth of Independent States export billet index later than scheduled on Wednesday October 13 due to a technical error, but it is now appearing as normal.Fastmarkets calculated the steel billet index, export, fob Black Sea, CIS, at $621 per tonne on October 13. The index was published in Fastmarkets' pricing database, MInD, later than scheduled due to a technical er...Read More
Steel wire rod prices in Northern Europe were broadly flat in the week to Wednesday October 13, with trading activity limited, but demand is expected to recover soon, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel wire rod (mesh quality), domestic, delivered Northern Europe was ?,?800-820 ($924-948) per tonne on Wednesday, same as seven days earlier.Daily demand for wire r...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil fell in Northern Europe and Italy on Wednesday October 13 with both buyers and sellers preferring to adopt a wait-and-see strategy, sources told Fastmarkets.Trading activity was expected to recover in November, however, according to market participants. Although the majority of European distributors have sufficient stocks to last until the year-end, they will ne...Read More
Turkish steel producers continued to pay higher prices for deep-sea scrap cargoes on Wednesday October 13, market participants told Fastmarkets.Late on Tuesday October 12, a steel mill in the Marmara region booked a Baltic Sea cargo comprising 12,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $470 per tonne and 18,000 tonnes of shredded at $490 per tonne cfr.On Wednesday, a steel mill in the Izmir region paid $...Read More
The rise in October's Kanto Tetsugen auction boosted sentiment in the Japanese scrap market and supported export offers from Japan, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday October 13. Japan local market pushes export offers higher Vietnam buyers increase bids Chinese buyers in wait-and-see mode due to losses in futuresJapan Offer prices for bulk cargoes of steel scrap from Japan rose again on Wedn...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices continued to fall on Wednesday October 13, after a formal announcement on upcoming winter restrictions by China's Ministry of Industry & Information Technology (MIIT).Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $124.17 per tonne, down $4.83 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $125.09 per tonne, down $5.08 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr...Read More
Seaborne coking coal prices in the cfr China market were broadly stable on Wednesday October 13, while fob prices inched lower amid limited buying interest due to high offers, market sources said.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $608.85 per tonne, down $0.10 per tonne Hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $559.46 per tonne, up $1.16 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT:...Read More
London-listed Cadence Minerals has obtained the approval of its credit committee to put the Amapa iron ore project in Brazil back on track, according to local news reports earlier this week.The project produces iron ore beneficiated to 65% Fe pellet feed and 62% Fe concentrate. Based on available historical mining plans and an independent consultant review, Amapa is expected to have a full product...Read More
Iron ore shipments from Australia's Port of Port Hedland rose by 3.1% in September from a year earlier, according to data released by the Pilbara Ports Authority on Tuesday October 12.The port on the northern coast of Western Australia exported 47 million tonnes of iron ore last month, compared with 45.6 million tonnes a year earlier. Last month's shipments were...Read More