The three-month zinc price on the London Metal Exchange was higher at the close of trading on Wednesday December 4, with upward movement in the price of the galvanizing metal supported by strong turnover, while nickel futures took a divergent path over the afternoon in a 1.6% sell-off.Zinc's underlying price on the LME closed at $2,245 per tonne in the afternoon, gaining just under 2% from Tuesday...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday December 4 that are worth another look.French special steelmaker Ascoval, part of the British Steel group, is to supply 140,000 tonnes per year of semi-finished products, rectangular blooms, to rail manufacturing specialist BSFR (British Steel France Rail) to be processed into rails for the SNCF R?(C)seau national train networ...Read More
The three-month zinc price on the London Metal Exchange was higher at the close of trading on Wednesday December 4, with upward movement in the price of the galvanizing metal supported by strong turnover, while nickel futures took a divergent path over the afternoon in a 1.6% sell-off.Zinc's underlying price on the LME closed at $2,245 per tonne in the afternoon, gaining just under 2% from Tuesday...Read More
A summary of London Metal Exchange warrant premiums from across the globe for the week to Wednesday December 4.Please click...Read More
The three-month zinc price on the London Metal Exchange was higher during morning trading on Wednesday December 4, with its price action bolstered by the fresh cancelation of 2,325 tonnes in addition to a narrowing of the metal's benchmark cash/three-month spread backwardation. Zinc's outright price on the LME was recently seen trading at $2,240 per tonne, a gain of $38 per tonne against Tuesday's...Read More
A summary of London Metal Exchange warrant premiums from across the globe for the week to Wednesday December 4.Please click...Read More
An overview of the noble alloys markets and their latest price moves.Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday December 4 that are worth another look.French special steelmaker Ascoval, part of the British Steel group, is to supply 140,000 tonnes per year of semi-finished products, rectangular blooms, to rail manufacturing specialist BSFR (British Steel France Rail) to be processed into rails for the SNCF R?(C)seau national train networ...Read More
The Indian lead premium surged to a two-month high this week while the three-month LME price struggles but global zinc premiums held firm despite softer forward spreads.Indian secondary lead premium hits two-month high US lead premium flat; impact from Belledune smelter shutdown yet to emerge Taiwan 2020 long-term lead supply contract signed; spot premium unchanged European market steady despite s...Read More
A sharp drop in the US Midwest aluminium premium in November was the primary reason market participants turned away from any sort of arbitrage opportunity between London Metal Exchange sheds in Asia and the United States. An ongoing aluminium stock drawdown throughout November in the US and a lingering backwardation on LME spreads pushed the premium to its lowest since March 2018. "Yet further wea...Read More
Year-end destocking continues to prolong a downturn in Shanghai copper cathode premiums but US and European markets are unchanged while annual contracts are being negotiated. Shanghai cif premiums at three month low US annual contracts in focus Large-scale cancellations of European on-warrant stocksShanghai premiums drop to three-month low, bonded premiums stable Copper cathode premiums on a cif...Read More
Taiwanese buyers of zinc ingot have signed 2020 annual supply contracts with major zinc producers at lower premiums compared with this year, sources with knowledge of the matter told Fastmarkets. "Top brands are signed at $145-150 per tonne and normal brands concluded at $130-140," one Tainwan-based source told Fastmarkets. "A number of Southeast Asia traders also signed at $145-150 per tonne," a...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States went up after domestic buyers returned from the Thanksgiving holidays to find that mills were quoting higher prices, sources said.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $27.93 per hundredweight ($558.60 per short ton) on Wednesday December 4, up by 1.4% from $27.54 per cwt on December 3. The uptick on...Read More
Brazilian flat steel producers have announced price increases to distributors for early January, following a move by Usiminas, sources said.Gerdau said on Wednesday December 4 that it will increase prices by 7-9.5% effective on January 1, while Companhia Sider??rgica Nacional said it intends to raise prices by 10%. ArcelorMittal is also planning to increase prices by around 10%, sources told...Read More
The price of steel rebar in the Southern Europe domestic market was unchanged this week with buyers and sellers disagreeing on the direction the market should take, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday November 4.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, delivered Southern Europe, was ?,?465-480 ($515-532) per tonne on Wednesday, unchanged week-on-week.Simi...Read More
The price of steel rebar in the Northern Europe domestic market was unchanged this week amid a stalemate between buyers and sellers over the direction in which prices should move, Fastmarkets heard on Wednesday November 4. Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, delivered Northern Europe was ?,?475-485 ($526-537) per tonne on Wednesday, unchanged from a we...Read More
Italy's Marcegaglia Group has acquired 100% of the equity in re-roller Palini & Bertoli, also located in Italy, from Russia's Evraz for ?,?40 million ($44 million), the purchasing company said on Wednesday December 4.Palini & Bertoli has capacity for 400,000 tonnes per year of heavy steel plate.After the acquisition, the capacity of Marcegaglia's steel...Read More
The Iranian export billet market has been rather quiet in the first week of December amid reduced availability of material for shipment in January, Fastmarkets has heard.This was due to successful sales to Africa, the Middle East and Asia in previous weeks as well as increased domestic demand."Local buyers were worried about the fluctuation [in the value] of the Iranian rial after fuel subsidy iss...Read More
The Turkish steel producers have continued their purchases of deep-sea market scrap for January shipments, while prices became even more firm, sources said on Wednesday December 4.A steel producer in the Iskenderun region booked a Baltic Sea cargo, comprising 17,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (95:5) at $290 per tonne cfr.Another steel mill in the Marmara region booked a European cargo, comprising 20,000 to...Read More
Seaborne prices edged up slightly on Wednesday December 4 amid gains in the futures market.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $89.06 per tonne, up $0.75 per tonne.62% Fe Pilbara Blend fines, cfr Qingdao: $88.15 per tonne, up $0.75 per tonne.62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $88.63 per tonne, up $0.43 per tonne.58% Fe fines high-premium, cfr Qingdao: $76...Read More