Turkish domestic rebar and wire rod prices have continued to weaken due to the sluggish demand in the country, sources said on Thursday February 21.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic rebar in Turkey was TRY3,100-3,150 ($584-594) per tonne ex-works on February 21, down from last week's TRY3,180-3,250 per tonne.Domestic rebar prices in the Izmir and Karab? 1/4 k regions were TRY3,100-...Read More
Iron ore prices continued to retreat on Thursday February 21, with Chinese steelmakers cautious abouthigh costs.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $86.68 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $1.32 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $86.08 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $1.32 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $88.36 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.74 per tonne. MB 58% Fe Premium Index: $77.23...Read More
The latest bids, offers and deals in the global markets for iron ore, pig iron, direct-reduced iron and other steelmaking raw materials. Latest transaction: iron oreIron oreVale, Beijing Iron Ore Trading Center (Corex), 170,000 tonnes of 65% Fe Iron Ore Carajas, traded at $99.80 per tonne cfr China, bill of lading...Read More
Authorities from Dalian Customs have announced the import quota across the five ports under its jurisdiction for the 2019 calendar year at no more than 12 million tonnes, down from 16 million tonnes in 2018, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday February 21.Port of Dalian: 950,000 tonnesPort of Bayuquan: 6.5 million tonnesPort of Panjin: 750,000 tonnesPort of Dandong: 3 million tonnesPort of Beilia...Read More
Seaborne coking coal prices rose on Thursday February 21 amid a suspension of operations at a mine in Queensland, Australia and with the emergence of a smaller quota for imported coal in a major city in northeastern China.An April-laycan cargo of a top Australian brand was sold at $215 per tonne cfr China to a Chinese trader via a miner's tender during the day, according to various sources.A cargo...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices rebounded on Thursday February 21 amid a pick-up in demand. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,700-3,740 yuan ($550-556) per tonne, up 30-40 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): 3,700-3,720 yuan per tonne, up 20 yuan per tonneGains in the billet and futures markets coupled with the announcement of higher list prices by steelmakers pushed up spot prices, sources s...Read More
China's hot-rolled coil market maintained its upward momentum on Thursday February 21, with sellers continuing to make attempts to prop up prices amid rising costs.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,760-3,790 yuan ($559-563) per tonne, up 40 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tianjin): 3,690-3,700 yuan per tonne, narrowing upward by 20 yuan per tonneSellers in Shanghai started selling at around 3,790...Read More
French mining and metallurgy company Eramet generated lower operating income from its manganese business in 2018 despite higher sales, the group announced in a results statement on Wednesday February 20.This was a consequence of squeezed manganese alloy margins which offset strong manganese ore prices.Operating income at the manganese division dropped to ?,?699 million ($793 million) in 2018 from...Read More
Key data from the Wednesday February 20 pricing session in Shanghai. Cobalt metal key drivers The domestic Chinese cobalt metal price trended lower midweek due to thin spot activity following the Chinese New Year holiday on February 4-10 as well as lower offers from some suppliers who were trying to offload stocks. Mainstream offers and sales for Jinchuan-brand cobalt were around 290,0...Read More
Domestic stainless steel prices in China increased slightly over the past week amid an uptick in demand.Fastmarkets MB's domestic price assessment for benchmark 304 stainless cold-rolled coil in the major market of Wuxi was 14,700-15,000 yuan ($2,185-2,230) per tonne including value-added tax for the week ended Wednesday February 20, narrowing upward by 100 yuan per tonne from 14,600-15,000 per to...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 10 points in pre-opening trade. The Canadian Dollar was up 0.07 to 75.70 cents U.S. following release of December Canadian Retail Sales. Consensus was a slip of 0.3% versus a drop of 0.9% in November. Actual was a slip of 0.1%.Royal Bank (RY $102.27) is expected to open higher after increasing its quarterly dividend. K...Read More
Europe frets over the stability of Indonesian tin supply, China sees less product coming from Myanmar and US buyers are trying to wait out the current high tin prices. Europe mulls how to make up for lost Indonesian supply Chinese premiums flat while import window closed US sees little spot buying, with buyers said to be waiting for rising LME tin prices to subside.European premiums flatIn Europe,...Read More
Shanghai zinc premiums softened over the past week on low spot interest due to import losses and a backwardation in London Metal Exchange price spreads, while lead premiums were largely unchanged across the globe, Fastmarkets heard on Wednesday February 20. Shanghai zinc market saw transactions at a lower premium, and import losses hovered around $100 per tonne. The contango of zinc spreads in mid...Read More
Copper's three-month price on the London Metal Exchange was up over 1% at the close of trading on Wednesday February 20, breaching $6,400 per tonne for the first time since July 2018 amid high volumes and dwindling LME stocks. Total volumes traded in copper led the complex with more than 21,000 lots changing hands by the close, the most since January 4. Despite significant buying over the aft...Read More
Glencore will cut copper production at its Mutanda mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo by 100,000 tonnes, the company said on Wednesday February 20. Cobalt hydroxide production at the mine, which totaled 27,300 tonnes last year, will not be affected. "In [the fourth quarter] 2018, a significant downward revision in the amount and timing of copper oxide reserves at our Mutanda copper operation...Read More
An overview of the minor metals markets and the reasons for any price moves.Read More
Key data from the Wednesday February 20 pricing session in Europe. Key drivers The European ferro-titanium spot price increased, with prices moving up on the low end of the range, after supply worries involving a major supplier prompted short-covering. Ferro-titanium producers and traders say they have been getting more buying interest from Europe and the United States. The producer typicall...Read More
Turkish scrap import prices went down as expected on Wednesday February 20, following news of a fresh deal for a deep-sea cargo.A steel mill in the Marmara region booked a UK cargo of 10,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $316 per tonne cfr.The news of this cargo sent the daily scrap indices down sharply on Wednesday.The daily index for Northern Europe-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) was...Read More
A blockchain pilot project designed to demonstrate the presence of artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sites in the tungsten supply chain is scheduled to be completed in May 2019.The SustainBlock trial started in May 2018 and is focused on a tungsten supply chain originating from Rwanda.Funded by the European Partnership for Responsible Minerals (EPRM), a multi-stakeholder grouping set up to cr...Read More
The Comex copper market continued to move in a positive direction on Wednesday February 20, with global trade talks between the United States and China showing progress.The copper price for March settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange increased 2.25 cents to $2.8970 per lb. Additionally, the red metal's price remains elevated against a backdrop of falling London....Read More