Base metals stocks at Shanghai Futures Exchange-approved warehouses were mostly down in the week ended Friday December 28, with nickel and copper bucking the trend.Zinc, aluminium, lead and tin stocks all fell this week, with lead registering the steepest decline and largely erasing the increase recorded last week. Deliverable lead stocks at SHFE warehouses fell by 3,521 tonnes or 18.2% over the p...Read More
Arbitrage for copper, aluminium, zinc and nickel imported into China on Friday December 28* Copper -$67.35 (-462.89 yuan) Aluminium -$353.46 (-2,429.18 yuan) Zinc $41.71 (286.65 yuan) Nickel $39.14 (268.98 yuan) *Fastmarkets calculates the physical arbitrage for import into China daily by using SHFE front-month and LME three-month...Read More
Good morning from Fastmarkets MB's offices in Asia as we bring you the latest news and pricing stories on Friday December 28.Base metals prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were broadly up during Asian morning trading on Friday, with weakness in the dollar buoying most of the complex.Check Fastmarkets MB's live futures report here. The Chinese antimony market showed signs of softening in...Read More
Indian domestic secondary billet prices rose by at least 600 rupees ($9) per tonne over the past week on sustained buying by long product makers and improved trading.Fastmarkets MB assessed the Indian secondary billet price at 31,200-31,400 rupees ($446-449) per tonne ex-mill on Thursday December 27 - an increase of 600 rupees per tonne compared with 30,600-30,800 rupees...Read More
Prices for coated-steel coil products in Turkey were mostly stable in the week to Friday December 28 amid continued limited demand.Last week's price cuts did not help improve buying, sources told Fastmarkets MB, because buyers usually postpone booking toward the end of the year to avoid building up inventories. Domestic prices One producer in northern Turkey was still offering 0.5mm hot-dippe...Read More
The latest bids, offers and deals in the global markets for hot-rolled coil, cold-rolled coil, hot-dipped galvanized coil, pre-painted galvanized iron, steel plate, steel sheet and other flat steel products. Latest transactions: HRC, CRC, HDG, PPGI Hot-rolled coilTurkey, domestic, hot-rolled coil, offered at $500-515 per tonne ex-works, February production.Turkey, domestic, hot-rolled coil, traded...Read More
Domestic prices for steel coil products in Turkey fell this week on continued slow demand, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday December 28."Buyers are not willing to book despite low stock levels," a source told Fastmarkets MB. "The first quarter of 2019 will also be slow for steel trading."Fastmarkets MB's weekly price assessment for Turkish domestic hot-rolled coil (HRC) was at $500-510 per tonne...Read More
China's hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices dipped on Friday December 28, although trading was moderate because downstream demand was stable, sources told Fastmarkets MB.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,680-3,700 yuan ($535-538) per tonne, down 20-30 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tianjin): 3,630-3,650 yuan per tonne, down 10 yuan per tonneThe dominant price range in Shanghai was 3,690-3,700 yuan per t...Read More
Large investment into construction, power and transport in North Africa will support further steel demand growth in the region but not significantly, Fastmarkets heard at the 22nd Middle East Iron and Steel Conference in Dubai on December 10-12.In North Africa, there are major infrastructure projects - either under construction or still in the planning stages - with investment totaling close to $6...Read More
No activity was reported in the global pig iron market over the past week, because buyers in the United States and Europe - the key outlets - left the market for end-of-year holidays, as did exporters from Brazil; the holiday period for suppliers from the Commonwealth of independent States will start next week. Pig iron sentiment remained pessimistic due to weakness in final steel product markets...Read More
Chinese iron ore buyers continued to take caution on Friday December 28, the last trading day for most market participants in 2018.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $72.73 per tonne cfr Qingdao, up $1.25 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $72.56 per tonne cfr Qingdao, up $1.25 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $74.12 per tonne cfr Qingdao, up $0.56 per tonne. MB 58% Fe Premium...Read More
Fastmarkets has amended the specifications for its three pig-iron price assessments in the United States and Brazil to reflect the existing market conditions.Following a month-long market consultation, the US and Brazilian pig iron prices have been amended to include the chemical compositions into the specifications to specify the phosphorous content of the pig iron, while payment terms and timing...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, Global Ore, 170,000 tonnes of 62% Fe Brazilian Blend fines, sold at the February average of the...Read More
There was thin spot trading in many parts of Asia, with most market participants having already exited the market for the year-end holidays.There were limited bids and offers in the key import markets of Taiwan and Vietnam.There was some talk among market participants that the supply of Japanese ferrous scrap is facing some tightness because many domestic and regional mills want to secure the...Read More
Participants in the seaborne coking coal market are keeping a close eye on Chinese buying activity while they gauge the raw material's price direction in the New Year.A small cargo of premium mid-vol material changed hands at $203 per tonne cfr China, market sources said on Friday December 28.Earlier in the day, an offer for premium hard coking coal material was heard at $198 per tonne cfr China,...Read More
The following Fastmarkets minor metals prices changed on Friday December 28:Minor metalsBismuth MB China domestic, yuan/tonne: 47,500-49,500 yuan per tonne from 47,000-49,500 yuanCobalt MB China domestic, yuan/tonne: 340,000-360,000 yuan...Read More
An overview of the Chinese minor metals markets and the reasons for any price moves. See also:2018 REVIEW: Eight things that changed in the minor...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were predominantly lower at the close of trading on Thursday December 27, capped by a sharp downturn in global stock indices while quiet trading continues to keep volumes low. Downward pressure manifested itself the most in aluminium futures over the afternoon, with the metal's three-month price dropping to its lowest level since July 2017 at $1,852....Read More
Comex copper prices softened during morning trading in the United States amid persistent worries over an upcoming recession or an escalation in the ongoing trade war between America and China.The copper price for March settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange dipped 3.15 to $2.6685 per lb."Metals markets are more fixated on recession jitters and continued...Read More
Feeding and trial production at Zhuzhou Smelter's new zinc project located in Shuikoushan, Hunan province started on December 26, Fastmarkets MB learned. The project has a 300,000-tonne-per-year zinc capacity smelter, which is replacing the company's closed 450,000-tpy capacity facility in Zhuzhou, also located in Hunan province."We started feeding on December 26, and plan to ramp-up the productio...Read More