Base metal stocks on Shanghai Futures Exchange-approved warehouses showed divergent trends during the week ending Friday March 22, with zinc stocks falling by 6.5% but those of aluminium, tin and lead rising. Deliverable zinc stocks at SHFE-approved warehouses declined by 8,064 tonnes, or 6.5%, week on week to 115,974 tonnes. This week Qisheng saw the most stock leaving from sheds - 9,086 ton...Read More
Warrant traders are reporting a big spike in Korean aluminium warrant premiums amid a substantial supply shortage in the region, Fastmarkets understands.Offers for aluminium warrants have been reported to Fastmarkets at $50-60 per tonne this week, considerably higher than earlier in the month. "You could get hold of Korean aluminium warrants for $30 per tonne a few weeks ago," a Europe-based...Read More
Arbitrage for copper, aluminium, zinc and nickel imported into China on Friday March 22*Copper -$149.47 (-1,004.15 yuan) Aluminium -$272.87 (-1,833.22 yuan) Zinc -$177.11 (-1,189.87 yuan) Nickel -$306.22 (-2,057.26 yuan) *Fastmarkets calculates the physical arbitrage for import into China daily by using...Read More
Prices for seaborne coking coal sold to China picked up more downward momentum on Friday March 22 following the conclusion of a transaction below prevailing levels.A cargo of a top Australian brand, scheduled for loading in end-April, was sold at $208 per tonne cfr China to a Chinese trader, various sources said. This is $4 per tonne lower than a transaction involving the same brand that was concl...Read More
The following Fastmarkets minor metals prices changed on Friday March 22:Minor metalsCobalt MB free market standard grade, $/lb: $13.30-14.20 per lb from $13.30-14.25Cobalt MB China domestic, yuan/tonne: 250,000-285,000 yuan per tonne from...Read More
An overview of the Chinese minor metals markets and the reasons for any price moves.Read More
With three-month base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange having come off their weekly highs, most metals remained under selling pressure and have continued to consolidate this morning, Friday March 22.The initial weakness seen in the dollar index following the surprisingly dovish tone struck by the US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) at the conclusion of their meeting on Wednesday prov...Read More
The price range in Europe for grade-304 stainless steel cold-rolled (CR) sheet widened upward this week, with some of the higher offers heard last week finally being accepted by buyers, although business was also done at the same prices as before, Fastmarkets heard on Friday March 22.Despite the partial increase, buyers said that many offers were still considered to be unrealistically high, and th...Read More
Some ferro-chrome suppliers to China have been charging the country's domestic stainless steel mills wider premiums to monthly tenders amid strong demand, market sources told Fastmarkets. Domestic Chinese stainless mills release yuan-based tender prices every month, announcing the price they are prepared to pay for ferro-chrome from domestic suppliers. Overseas ferro-chrome suppliers are often exp...Read More
China's leading stainless steel mills announced increases in their April tender prices for high-carbon ferro-chrome by 300 yuan ($45) per tonne month on month on Friday March 22.The rises will be imposed by Taiyuan Iron & Steel (Tisco), Tsingshan Group and Baosteel, Fastmarkets heard.After this adjustment, Tisco's April tender price for high-carbon ferro-chrome will be 6,950 yuan ($1,038) per tonn...Read More
China's importers of stainless steel billet and slab, as well as stainless hot-rolled plate and coil originating from the European Union, Japan, South Korea and Indonesia have been instructed to pay a deposit to the country's customs authorities from Saturday March 23 onward.This is a preliminary measure relating to an ongoing anti-dumping probe into such imports, which is expected to come to a co...Read More
The following Fastmarkets non-ferrous European free market scrap prices changed on Friday March 22:The following Fastmarkets non-ferrous European free market scrap...Read More
Nickel's three-month price on the London Metal Exchange fell by more than 3% at the close of trading on Thursday March 21, with risk-averse United States investment prompting a sharp sell-off across the complex while participants question details of the recent US Federal Reserve policy meeting. Falling the furthest over the afternoon, nickel futures dropped a total of $470 per tonne to close below...Read More
Sluggish demand from domestic aluminium smelters in China, along with the VAT cut from 16% to 13% on April 1, led to a further drop in alumina prices this week.Fastmarkets' price assessment for Chinese free market Metallurgical grade alumina, delivered duty paid, was 2,680-2,700 yuan ($400-403) per tonne on Thursday March 21, down from 2,690-2,710 yuan per tonne a week ago. The...Read More
Comex copper prices sprang upward in morning trading on Thursday March 21 amid a dovish tone from the Federal Reserve, easing speculation of a near-term rate hike. The copper price for May settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange gained 0.65 cents to $2.9275 per lb. As anticipated by the overall marketplace, the US Fed decided not to lift rates and signaled that they ex...Read More
Deliveries of copper concentrate from Mongolia's Erdenet mine were disrupted in early March after several top managers were dismissed in a restructuring program ordered by the country's government, although production continued as normal, Fastmarkets has learned.The Erdenet mine produces 530,000 tonnes per year of ores and is one of Asia's biggest copper and molybdenum mines.Erdenet is known as 't...Read More
Sluggish demand from domestic aluminium smelters in China, along with the VAT cut from 16% to 13% on April 1, led to a further drop in alumina prices this week.Fastmarkets' price assessment for Chinese free market Metallurgical grade alumina, delivered duty paid, was 2,680-2,700 yuan ($400-403) per tonne on Thursday March 21, down from 2,690-2,710 yuan per tonne a week ago. The...Read More
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has lifted a ban on the export of cobalt and copper concentrates imposed in February but maintained the threat of its future enforcement. In a letter to the National Federation of Enterprises (FEC) seen by Fastmarkets and dated March 20, Minister of Mines Henri Yav Mulang said the government will review every six months whether to reimpose the ban. "I would l...Read More
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has lifted a ban on the export of cobalt and copper concentrates imposed in February but maintained the threat of its future enforcement. In a letter to the National Federation of Enterprises (FEC) seen by Fastmarkets and dated March 20, Minister of Mines Henri Yav Mulang said the government will review every six months whether to reimpose the ban. "I would l...Read More
The Turkish deep-sea scrap import prices inched up on Thursday March 21 with news of a fresh deep-sea cargo trade.A steel producer in the Marmara region booked a Baltic Sea cargo, comprising 25,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $321 per tonne cfr, late on March 20.This compared with the previous Baltic Sea cargo sold on...Read More