Some of the most important countries in global mining production are moving forward with talks to secure a larger share of the commodity price escalation seen during the Covid-19 pandemic, mostly to fund their own social programs - but companies and industry groups fear this could compromise future investments.South American mining giants Chile, Peru and Brazil seek to increase mining royalties, e...Read More
Turkey and Russia have exhausted their permitted import quota allowances for certain long steel products within just days of renewal, Fastmarkets has observed from European Commission data.The import market for long steel products in the European Union has remained strained because of safeguard measures. The fourth-quarter quota for steel imports into the EU came into effect on October 1 and will...Read More
An overview of the new energy materials markets and their price moves in the week to Friday October 8.Susan Zou, Yingchi Yang and...Read More
Canadian junior miner Lithium Americas has increased its resource estimate and capacity of its lithium mine project at Thacker Pass, in the US state of Nevada.The new resource estimate is 13.7 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE), more than double the estimate in 2018, Lithium Americas said on Thursday October 7.Phase 1 capacity increased to 40,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate annually, up...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday October 7 that are worth another look.Steel producer Feralpi Group is to invest ?,?100 million ($115 million) in renewable power at its Italian sites, it announced on Thursday October 7.Vale has resumed activities at its On??a...Read More
Surging spot spodumene prices following aggressive bids in the latest Pilbara Minerals' spodumene concentrate auction has elevated negotiated prices for fourth-quarter term contracts, market sources told Fastmarkets.Bids for SC 5.5% units reached a high of $2,240 per dry metric tonne (dmt), fob Hedland, during the Australian miner's second spodumene auction on its Battery Metals Exchange on Tuesda...Read More
South American flat steel import prices were mostly stable or moved slightly in the week to Friday October 8 amid China's National Day holiday and few offers from other origins.There was no activity from China during the October 1-7 period due to week-long national holiday there, which paved the way for material from other countries to be offered to South American clients. However, with the market...Read More
Prices for shredded steel scrap imported into Pakistan and India took a sharp upturn in the week to Friday October 8, on a pick-up in demand, sources told Fastmarkets.PakistanFastmarkets calculated its weekly steel scrap, shredded, index, import, cfr Port Qasim, Pakistan at $ 535.07 per tonne on Friday, up from $508.69 per tonne one week previous.Deals were initially heard at $530-535 per tonne be...Read More
Rebar prices in Poland continue to fall due to weak buying interest but the downtrend is likely to reverse in October, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday October 8.Trading activity in the local rebar market remained subdued over the past week, with distributors still refraining from purchasing amid expectations of lower prices."End-user demand is not so bad - only distributors don't buy anything,"...Read More
Base metals prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were up across the board on the morning of Friday October 8, while those on the London Metal Exchange were for the most part stronger, as were Asia-Pacific equities.Today's focus will be on the US employment report.Market participants relieved that US Senate agreed to lift debt limit ceiling until December.Oil prices and US treasury yields rise f...Read More
Brazil's domestic hot-rolled coil prices have declined in October, with some producers heard giving discounts amid pressure from distributors and clients, although the movement was not yet widespread in the market.Two steel producers were offering material above the market average but are now granting discounts due to the difficult market, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' monthly price assess...Read More
An overview of the new energy materials markets and their price moves in the week to Friday October 8.Susan Zou, Yingchi Yang and...Read More
An overview of the specialty steel raw materials markets in Europe and their latest price moves.Janie Davies, Cristina Belda,...Read More
The congestion at major ports that has affected shipping operations for metals and minerals on the China-to-Europe route is set to worsen in the next three or four months, sources told Fastmarkets during last week's International Colloquium on Refractories conference in Aachen, Germany.Lead times for cargo shipping from China to European ports have increased in recent months because of a series of...Read More
Trading activity in the United States' pig iron import market was low in the week to Friday October 8 due to uncertainty about the direction of prices.Fastmarkets' assessment of the price for pig iron, import, cfr Gulf of Mexico, US was $540 per tonne on Friday, narrowing upward by $10 from $530-540 per tonne a week earlier. The only deal in the...Read More
Fastmarkets' spot copper concentrates treatment/refining charge remained largely stable in the week to October 8.A few clean parcels were sold to smelters in the low-to-mid $60s during the week - still below the Chinese pricing floor of $70 per tonne targeted for fourth quarter procurement.Overall buying interest has remained low, with Chinese importers away for the most of...Read More
Turkey and Russia have exhausted their permitted import quota allowances for certain long steel products within just days of renewal, Fastmarkets has observed from European Commission data.The import market for long steel products in the European Union has remained strained because of safeguard measures. The fourth-quarter quota for steel imports into the EU came into effect on October 1 and will...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices moved up on Friday October 8 on increased demand after the week-long holiday.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 5,910-5,950 yuan ($916-923) per tonne, up by 10-20 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): weekly assessment: 5,800-5,850 yuan per tonne, up by 100-110 yuan per tonneEnd-user demand was strong during the...Read More
Brazilian slab export prices decreased in the week ended Friday October 8 amid continuing weak buying activity and strong competition from other regions.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel slab, export, fob main port Brazil was down to $760-780 per tonne on Friday, down by $20 from $780-800 per tonne on October 1.Bids for Brazilian material were heard close to $720 per tonne fob in...Read More
Brazil's domestic price for steel reinforcing bar fell in October due to more balanced supply-demand fundamentals and a broader global downtrend.On the other hand, Turkish prices had rebounded in the week to Friday October 8, and market participants saw room for price increases in Brazil.Brazilian mills usually follow international trends, aiming for an average 10% premium in domestic prices over...Read More