Turkish alloy steelmaker ??emtas has started production at its new stabilizer line for supplying steel to commercial vehicle producer Man, ??emtas said on Tuesday September 21.Located in Bursa, ??emtas has a crude-steel production...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Europe were stable to slightly lower on Thursday, while trading activity remained subdued because of bearish buyer expectations amid falling automotive demand, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday September 23. Buyers across Europe continued to maintain a wait-and-see stance and held back from trading, sources said. The recent slowdown in the automotive...Read More
Discounts for some copper scrap grades in the United States fell due to continuing strong demand and a well-balanced market. "Demand is pretty good, and is getting better," a copper scrap seller said. "Supply will get tighter by end of the year.""It is a very good market - supply might get tighter," a brass ingot maker said.But scrap flows may change due to the Malaysian government setti...Read More
Market-based measures to help efforts to decarbonize would probably work well in the United States, according to the vice president of the European Commission.Frans Timmermans said that he had discussed the concept of the US introducing a carbon-pricing mechanism of some kind with members of the Senate Climate Solutions Caucus in Washington DC on Thursday September 23."I said to the Senators, some...Read More
Peruvian miner Buenaventura's Uchucchacua zinc, lead and silver mine in the center of the country has been put under blockade by members of the local community, halting all mining and logistics activity at the site.Access to the mine has been blocked by members of the Oy??n province community since September 13, with only essential operations still being carried out, Buenaventura said on Wednesday...Read More
Major zinc and lead smelters across China received orders from provincial governments on Wednesday September 22 to lower their power consumption, sources told Fastmarkets. One major zinc smelter source in Guangxi was informed by the government to cut their electricity by 20%.'We are not told when power consumption could resume [to] normal at all. Some peers were even instructed to halve electricit...Read More
Base metal prices were slightly higher on the morning of Thursday September 23, but stayed close to their closing prices from Wednesday, with worries about Evergrande easing."Investors grew more confident a disorderly default [had been] avoided after a real estate unit of the group managed to negotiate a debt resolution yesterday [Wednesday]," LME Desk analyst at Marex, Anna Stablum, said on...Read More
Base metals prices were mixed on both the LME and SHFE on Thursday September 23, with the broader markets welcoming the news that Chinese property giant Evergrande has avoided imploding, for now, and not spooked by the US Federal Reserve's more hawkish outlook.Chairman Jerome Powell says the United States Federal Reserve could "easily move ahead" with its decision about when to taperEvergrande sha...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States were above $97 per hundredweight for the eighth time in the past nine business days, with market participants speculating that tight market conditions will continue during the fourth quarter when mills shutdown for maintenance.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $97.48 per cwt ($1,949.60 per ton) on Thursday Sept...Read More
Crude steel output in Germany increased by 3.40% year on year in August, the German steel federation, WV Stahl, said on Thursday September 23.German crude steel production totaled more than 2.93 million tonnes in August 2021, up from 2.83 million tonnes in August last year."The upward trend in crude steel production in Germany continued in August, but the pace [of growth has slowed]," WV Stah...Read More
Fastmarkets proposes to amend the publishing time of the weekly India HMS assessment on Friday, from 4:30pm London time to 4:00pm London time, to align better with the publishing time of the India and Pakistan ferrous scrap indices.The shredded indices for India and Pakistan are both published at 4pm London time on a Friday, and the India HMS assessment will be brought in line with this, to offer...Read More
Prices for ferrous scrap into Turkey were steady on Thursday September 23, with mills remaining absent from the deep-sea scrap market and making no purchases for a fourth day, market participants told Fastmarkets.Sources were in agreement that the market was nearly silent throughout the week and that prices were unchanged.The stability was supported by equally flat finished-steel prices during the...Read More
Chinese buyers continued to buy pig iron imports at increasingly high prices over the past fortnight, market sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday September 23.Demand for pig iron in China has been bolstered ahead of the autumn and winter seasons, in which many Chinese mills must reduce sintering in line with pollution controls guidance from the country's Ministry of Ecology and Environment.A...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices edged down on Thursday September 23, with concerns over demand growing due to China's steel production curbs, sources said.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $108.67 per tonne, down $0.03 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $109.38 per tonne, down $1.27 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $79.54 per tonne, up $3.29 per ton...Read More
Bangladesh has returned to the deep-sea import market with another deal over the past week, market sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday September 23.Bangladeshi mill returns to buy bulk cargoes, sources sayChina's scrap import volumes dropped by over 50% in AugustTaiwanese buyers continue purchasing at higher prices after electricity rationing endsBangladeshAt least one deal for United States-orig...Read More
Coking coal prices in the cfr market retreated slightly on Thursday September 23; steel production cuts and winter production curbs led market participants to doubt the sustainability of strong seaborne cfr prices.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $600.82 per tonne, down $1.51 per tonneHard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $550 per tonne, down $5.05 per tonnePremium hard coking...Read More
The impact of China's new "Two High" energy and emissions policy is likely to continue in the iron ore market into the first quarter of 2022, sources told Fastmarkets this week.Sentiment for the coming six months has turned increasingly bearish since the guidelines, coupled with winter production restrictions, were announced in September. New guidance on 'Two-High' projectsThe "Two-High" poli...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in China were largely stable on Thursday September 23, while futures retreated in response to the spread of escalated production curbs to downstream users.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 5,720-5,780 yuan ($886-895) per tonne, narrowing downward by 20 yuan per tonneThe most-traded HRC contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange slipped to a three-week low of 5,58...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices held steady on Thursday September 23 after surging a day earlier, with demand among stockists dropping during the day. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 5,800-5,840 yuan ($897-903) per tonne, unchanged Stockists held off from restocking further during the day amid losses in the futures market. They are not expecting prices to experience much upside in the near term.O...Read More
China's domestic stainless steel prices surged rose sharply over the week to Wednesday September 23 amid tight supply and steady demand.DomesticStainless steel cold-rolled coil 2mm grade 304 domestic (Wuxi): 21,800-22,500 ($3,370-3,478) per tonne, up by 2,800 yuan per tonne from a week earlier Prices have risen to their highest since September 2011.Jiangsu province, a major stainless steel product...Read More