Nickel premiums in all regions assessed by Fastmarkets were stable week on week on Tuesday January 29 in quiet trading conditions relating to macroeconomic uncertainty as well as market participants retreating for Lunar New Year. All European premiums remain unchanged in an illiquid market US cut-cathodes outperform briquettes amid slow trade Shanghai sees no change for six weeks, pre...Read More
The disaster caused by Vale's dam rupturing in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais has no connection to the issue surrounding Norsk Hydro's alumina refinery Alunorte and will probably not stall its return to 100% capacity, market observers told Fastmarkets during the week.Norwegian aluminium group Hydro is waiting for approval from the federal justice in Brazil to increase output at Alunorte. Two...Read More
An overview of the minor metals markets and the reasons for any price moves.Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday January 30 that are worth another look.Brazilian iron ore pellet producer Samarco and its creditors have not reached a debt restructuring agreement by the end of a scheduled deadline, according to documents disclosed by the company on Tuesday January 29. Eastman Kodak Co was granted 40 exclusions to the United States...Read More
Roland Harings will take up the role of chief executive officer of German copper giant Aurubis in July 2019, the company said on Wednesday January 30.Harings will succeed current CEO J? 1/4 rgen Schachler in overseeing the business of Europe's largest copper producer.Since 2014, Harings has been CEO of Mansfelder Kupfer & Messing (MKM), a major European producer of semi-finished products of copper...Read More
Fresh reports are emerging of traders taking positions in the manganese ore market, sparking reminders of speculation-led rallies that occurred in previous years. Position trading refers to buying up larger than normal cargoes of manganese ore on expectations of making profit from a resultant price rise. It is a tactic that has not been seen for some time because opportunities have been limited du...Read More
Prices for steel billet in Asia are likely to come under greater pressure in 2019 with demand for it as well as downstream long steel products expected to stay subdued amid an impending surge in new supply, sources told Fastmarkets MB."Regional demand is weak, so there is not enough room for everyone," a Vietnam-based trader said, referring to a string of new billet production capacity set to come...Read More
Nickel closed higher on the London Metal Exchange on Wednesday January 30 after peaking at an intraday high of $12,455 per tonne, its highest since October. Low stocks and robust demand from stainless steel and nickel pig iron (NPI) production, predominantly in China and Indonesia, are underpinning the upward trend in the three-month price, which is now more 15% higher than its 2018 low of $10,500...Read More
The European tin premium dropped by $35 on the midpoint in the week ended Tuesday January 29 following a 1,000 tonne delivery to London Metal Exchange sheds, while other regional premiums were unchanged week on week in quiet markets. Premium for standard grade tin ingot, in-warehouse Rotterdam, falls 7.4% Adequate supply keeps US premiums unchanged Shanghai premium flat in quiet, pre-...Read More
Nickel's three-month price on the London Metal Exchange continued its strong performance during morning trading on Wednesday January 30, moving past $12,300 per tonne for the first time since October 2018 amid a continued drawdown in LME supply. The metal's three-month price is up more than 15% from its 2018 low of $10,500 per tonne on December 31, while total LME inventory remains at its lowest l...Read More
A lack of new business kept the prices of hollow steel sections in Europe unchanged on Wednesday January 30 although market sentiment has been mixed, participants told Fastmarkets MB.Fastmarkets MB's domestic price assessment for commodity-size, grade-S235 square hollow sections made in Northern Europe was unchanged week on week at ?,?630-640 ($720-731) per tonne delivered on Wednesday.This week m...Read More
European prices for mesh-quality wire rod stayed flat across the continent on Wednesday January 30, with market activity almost at a standstill ahead of the imposition by the European Commission (EC) of new import quotas next month.Fastmarkets' weekly domestic price assessment for mesh-quality wire rod in Northern Europe stayed at ?,?530-550 ($606-629) per tonne delivered on Wednesday, with prices...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday January 30 that are worth another look.Brazilian iron ore pellet producer Samarco and its creditors have not reached a debt restructuring agreement by the end of a scheduled deadline, according to documents disclosed by the company on Tuesday January 29. Eastman Kodak Co was granted 40 exclusions to the United States...Read More
Roland Harings will take up the role of chief executive officer of German copper giant Aurubis in July 2019, the company said on Wednesday January 30.Harings will succeed current CEO J? 1/4 rgen Schachler in overseeing the business of Europe's largest copper producer.Since 2014, Harings has been CEO of Mansfelder Kupfer & Messing (MKM), a major European producer of semi-finished products of copper...Read More
The European tin premium dropped by $35 on the midpoint in the week ended Tuesday January 29 following a 1,000 tonne delivery to London Metal Exchange sheds, while other regional premiums were unchanged week on week in quiet markets. Premium for standard grade tin ingot, in-warehouse Rotterdam, falls 7.4% Adequate supply keeps US premiums unchanged Shanghai premium flat in quiet, pre-...Read More
Tim Li, vice president of Daye Nonferrous, will leave his position at the major Chinese copper smelter, Fastmarkets has learned. Li currently oversees the procurement of copper concentrates and blister copper for Daye, which has capacity of 700,000 tonnes per year of copper cathode. He will leave his...Read More
A summary of Nornickel's production results for the year ended December 31, 2018IN BRIEF: 2018 nickel and consolidated copper output exceeded production guidance forecast for the year amid productivity improvements.Completion of a downstream reconfiguration program, which...Read More
Zinc premiums in most regions were unchanged week-on-week amid sluggish demand, but a recovery was seen in the Italian market as low stocks buoyed prices ahead of the arrival of new shipments. Meanwhile, Indian lead premiums dipped on the futures price uptick on the London Metal Exchange (LME). Italian zinc premiums gain, underpinned by low stocks. Might be short-lived as new supply is on the wayZ...Read More
The price for rebar produced and delivered in Southern Europe remained stable on Wednesday January 30, with no new deals reported while market participants waited for a final proposal from the European Commission (EC) on its 2019 safeguarding import quotas.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic rebar in Southern Europe stayed at ?,?510-520 ($583-594) per tonne delivered on Wednesday, bu...Read More
Domestic prices for steel beams in Europe were unchanged on Wednesday January 30, with market conditions remaining stable this week, sources have told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic S235-grade, 200x200mm, category-2 H-beam in Northern Europe was ?,?620-640 ($709-732) per tonne delivered on January 30, flat week on week."It seems that the reduction in scrap prices has...Read More