German steelmakers have settled their monthly scrap contracts for March at largely stable prices, sources told Fastmarkets on Monday March 18.Fastmarkets' monthly price assessment for domestic grade-E3 scrap in Germany was ?,?265-285 ($300-323) per tonne delivered on March 15, unchanged over the month. The assessment represented deals heard in the market.Although the price range remained stable, s...Read More
The Turkish deep-sea scrap import markets went quiet at the beginning of the week, with mills expecting to hear lower offer prices, sources said on Monday March 18.Most of the offers in the market were around $330 per tonne cfr for United States-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20), while mills were looking for $315-320 per tonne, sources said.The expectation for lower prices was a consequence of the strength o...Read More
CIS slab producers continued to keep their offer prices steady in the second half of March, supported by reduced availability of the material in the market due to imminent repair works at some sites.This was despite the lack of buying activity and comparatively much lower bids being placed by customers.Offers of CIS-origin billet were heard within the range of $500-505 per tonne fob Black Sea in t...Read More
The CIS export billet market remained at a standstill on Monday March 18 due to the absence of trading activity in most of the commodity's usual outlet regions, Fastmarkets heard on Monday March 18.Mills were indicating offers within the range of $460-465 per tonne fob Black Sea.But customers in most outlet regions could not afford such high prices because they would not be able to pass on these h...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices moved higher on Monday March 18 as stockists looked to replenish inventories, despite many spot traders opting to sit on the sidelines as they digest the implications of the reduction in the Chinese value-added tax (VAT) rate from next month.Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,850-3,900 yuan ($573-581) per tonne, up 40-50 yuan per tonne Northern China (Beij...Read More
The expectation for higher tender prices for chrome ore in April supported the prices for ore in China and for alloy in Japan and South Korea, Fastmarkets heard on Monday March 18. UG2 and Turkish lumpy ore prices rise Domestic alloy price climbs in China Alloy prices in Europe, Japan, South Korea increase Imported alloy prices stable in US, China.Prices for chrome ore imported into China and in C...Read More
Bulk alloy suppliers are reporting increased prompt demand from British consumers amid concerns about potential supply disruptions when the United Kingdom leaves the European Union. Increased demand as a result of increased call-offs - consumers exercising their rights to material under existing contracts - as well as better spot demand, could lead to higher prices in the coming weeks, according t...Read More
The number of new passenger car registrations in the EU decreased by only 0.96% year-on-year in February 2019. This made it the sixth consecutive month to show a decline but there were also signs of recovery, the European Automotive Manufacturers Assn (ACEA) said on Friday March 15.New car sales in Europe totaled 1,114,692 units in February 2019, compared with 1,125,472 vehicles sold in the corres...Read More
Import prices for steel slab in Southeast Asia and East Asia were unchanged over the past week amid a lack of trading activity.The weekly Fastmarkets MB import price assessment for slab in Southeast Asia and East Asia was $475-495 per tonne cfr on Monday March 18, the same as a week earlier.Trading activity in the spot market remained sluggish over the week amid...Read More
A preliminary decision from a court in Brazil's Itabira city, in the country's southeastern Minas Gerais state, has ordered Vale to suspend activities at two of its tailings dams, following a request from the Minas Gerais state prosecutors' office, MPMG.Vale immediately complied with the decision, which affects the dams of Minervino and Cord??o Nova Vista, part of the Cau?? mine, the company said...Read More
Revenue garnered from the United States' Section 232 tariffs - in place for almost a year - stood at $4.3 billion for steel and $1.4 billion for aluminium as of Thursday February 21, 2019, according to data from US Customs and Border Protection.While the blanket 25% steel tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump's administration has helped US steel mills to reap record profits, restart id...Read More
Brazil's Vale is warning of a 12.8-million-tonnes-per-year impact on its iron ore production as a result of the suspension of operations at its Timbopeba mine in Ouro Preto city, in the country's Minas Gerais state, following a civil court decision.The miner said that the court - within the scope of a public civil action filed by Minas Gerais' public prosecution office - had instructed it to refra...Read More
The Chinese and European ferro-vanadium markets continued their downward trends last week amid sluggish demand, Fastmarkets heard on Monday March 18. Chinese ferro-vanadium, pentoxide markets soften on lack of buying appetite Aggressive offers in Europe continue to push ferro-vanadium market down European pentoxide market softens on weak demand Poor trading in US ferro-vanadium market.The Chinese...Read More
A preliminary decision from a court in Brazil's Itabira city, in the country's southeastern Minas Gerais state, has ordered Vale to suspend activities at two of its tailings dams, following a request from the Minas Gerais state prosecutors' office, MPMG.Vale immediately complied with the decision, which affects the dams of Minervino and Cord??o Nova Vista, part of the Cau?? mine, the company said...Read More
The expectation for higher tender prices for chrome ore in April supported the prices for ore in China and for alloy in Japan and South Korea, Fastmarkets heard on Monday March 18. UG2 and Turkish lumpy ore prices rise Domestic alloy price climbs in China Alloy prices in Europe, Japan, South Korea increase Imported alloy prices stable in US, China.Prices for chrome ore imported into China and in C...Read More
The market for flat steel exports from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) remained relatively unchanged at the start of this week amid low availability, sources told Fastmarkets on Monday March 18.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for CIS-origin exports of hot-rolled coil (HRC) was $510-520 per tonne fob Black Sea on March 14, narrowing from $500-525 per tonne fob Black Sea a week bef...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Monday March 18 that are worth another look.Bulk alloy suppliers are reporting increased prompt demand from British consumers amid concerns about potential supply disruptions when the United Kingdom leaves the European Union. A preliminary decision from a court in Brazil's Itabira city, in the country's southeastern Minas Gerais st...Read More
When the London Metal Exchange amended its policies related to its physical delivery network a few years ago, it overlooked one key thing. The issue centers on LME's linked load-in/load-out (LILO) rule, which operates by linking the amount of metal a warehouse loads in to the amount it is obligated to load out for warehouses that have queues of over 50 days.The rule changes were part of package of...Read More
Hilde Merete Aasheim has been appointed new president and chief executive officer of aluminium producer Norsk Hydro, effective May 8.She will succeed Svein Richard Brandtz??g, who steps down after 10 years as CEO.Brandtz??g, who became CEO of Hydro in March 2009, has been working in Hydro for 33 years and will remain with the company...Read More
Revenue garnered from the United States' Section 232 tariffs - in place for almost a year - stood at $4.3 billion for steel and $1.4 billion for aluminium as of Thursday February 21, 2019, according to data from US Customs and Border Protection.While the blanket 25% steel tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump's administration has helped US steel mills to reap record profits, restart id...Read More