Imported steel billet prices decreased this week in Egypt with lower offers heard in the market, but domestic rebar prices remained unchanged, sources told Metal Bulletin on Thursday July 5.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for domestic rebar in Egypt on Thursday July 5 was unchanged at E ?12,525-12,528 ($699) per tonne ex-works. The country's major rebar producer, Ezz Steel, continued offe...Read More
Metal Bulletin is proposing to amend the minimum tonnage used in the calculation of its CIS Billet Index.The index is a tonnage-weighted calculation intrinsically linked to market transactions. Following internal analysis, Metal Bulletin is proposing to lower the minimum tonnage included in the index in order to ensure that concluded transactions have the largest effect on the final index calculat...Read More
Baowu Steel, China's largest steelmaker, is adding 4.03 million tonnes to its hot metal capacity and 3.61 million tonnes to crude steel capacity at its Zhanjiang city production site in Guangdong province, south China.The increases come at the expense of production cuts at operations in Shanghai and in Jiangsu province.Baowu cut 1.18 million tons of capacity at its Nanjing-based subsidiary Shangha...Read More
Metal Bulletin proposes to divide its existing 0.10% C low-carbon ferro-chrome product into two products according to chromium content. At present Metal Bulletin includes all price points for low-carbon ferro-chrome with a carbon and chromium content of 0.10% and 60-70% chrome respectively into the existing low-carbon ferro-chrome (0.10% C avg 60-64.9% Cr) delivered consumer works Europe $/lb...Read More
Molybdic oxide prices in Europe have dropped slightly amid slow trading activity this week, while the ferro-molybdenum price range widened.Market participants with either long or short positions are jostling to set a price platform in readiness for expected renewed demand in the latter half of the current quarter.The likelihood is that prices are set to hold around the current range until August,...Read More
The latest ferro-tungsten and ammonium paratungstate (APT) transactions, bids, offers and assessments in Europe, Vietnam and China, with blue tungsten oxide (BTO) and yellow tungsten oxide (YTO) deals taken into consideration.To view the latest price quotations, follow the links below:China- APT, fob China- Ferro-tungsten, fob ChinaEurope- APT, cif Rotterdam- Ferro-tungsten, in-warehouse Rotterdam...Read More
Key data from Metal Bulletin's Wednesday July 4 pricing session in China.Molybdenum concentrate MB Chinese free market, 45% Mo, in-warehouse China, RMB/mtuKey drivers:- Demand from steel mills for downstream ferro-molybdenum picked up due to lower prices- As a result, prices for moly concentrates, feedstock of ferro-molybdenum, began to increase on...Read More
Stainless steel scrap supply remains plentiful in the United States amid strong demand, leaving prices stable, although transportation to haul scrap is getting more difficult."Prices are flat, but the big problem is getting trucks to pick up loads!" one scrap dealer said."Overall things are stable heading into July as nickel seems to have settled into a steady trading range as supply and demand se...Read More
Prices for Australian iron ore fines softened further on Thursday July 5 with the benchmark product of Pilbara Blend fines being offered at bigger discounts.Metal Bulletin 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $63.14 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $1.06 per tonneMetal Bulletin 62% Fe Pilbara Blend fines Index: $61.91 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $1.06 per tonneMetal Bulletin 58% Fe Premium Index: $51.55 per tonne cf...Read More
Three-month base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange broadly continued their recent run of weakness on the morning of Thursday July 5. Nickel prices were unchanged, while the rest of the complex was down by between 0.3% for copper ($6,382 per tonne) and 0.7% for aluminium ($2,089 per tonne). Volume has been above average with 8,855 lots traded as at 7:17am London time. This follows a genera...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 21 points in pre-opening trade. Futures are responding to weakness in the U.S. Dollar Index.Index futures were virtually unchanged following release of economic news. Consensus for June ADP employment was 180,000 versus revised 189,000 in May. Actual was 177,000. Consensus for Weekly Jobless Claims was 225,000 versus r...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 oreRio Tinto,...Read More
Chinese buyers remain on the sidelines of the seaborne coking coal market amid sustained bearishness."There are still some pockets of demand in China but the weakened yuan [has made dollar-denominated cargoes more expensive for Chinese buyers]," an international trader source told Metal Bulletin on Thursday July 5. Earlier in the day, an end-user source submitted a firm bid for a cargo of premium...Read More
The mid-week recovery in China's domestic rebar market turned out to be short-lived with prices dipping on Thursday July 5 after futures fell during the early trading hours.Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,940-3,980 yuan ($594-600) per tonne, down 10-20 yuan per tonne Northern China (Beijing): 3,870-3,910 yuan per tonne, down 10 yuan per tonne The early-hour losses in the futures market led to...Read More
Base metals on the London Metal Exchange ticked higher across the board during morning trading on Thursday July 5, with lead prices climbing by 1.7% after a fresh 15,000 tonne cancelation in Antwerp. Broad upticks in metal prices come after positive PMI results in China and the United Kingdom (details below) indicate positive business conditions, while a slight retreat in the dollar index has give...Read More
Chinese cobalt metal prices fell to a seven-month low on Wednesday July 4, with buyers taking a step back to watch international prices that have continued to fall in recent weeks. Meanwhile, the gap between suppliers' expectations and buyers' bids widened further after local futures prices dipped to a fresh annual low. Metal Bulletin's spot Chinese domestic cobalt metal price dropped to 530,...Read More
Three-month base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange broadly continued their recent run of weakness on the morning of Thursday July 5. Nickel prices were unchanged, while the rest of the complex was down by between 0.3% for copper ($6,382 per tonne) and 0.7% for aluminium ($2,089 per tonne). Volume has been above average with 8,855 lots traded as at 7:17am London time.This follows a general...Read More
Cobalt trade log including business, bids and offers reported to Metal Bulletin. Unless otherwise stated, all prices are per lb on an in-warehouse basis. Delivered prices are netted back. Metal Bulletin prices Click here for Metal Bulletin's price assessment for low-grade cobalt, in-warehouse, $ per lb Click here for Metal Bulletin's price assessment for high-grade cobalt, in-warehouse, $ per lb I...Read More
Metal Bulletin proposes to amend the delivery timing noted in the specification for its weekly domestic base price assessments for three European domestic stainless steel markets.Metal Bulletin proposes a minimum delivery time of four weeks to reflect the growing divergence in lead times for both flat and long stainless steel products in Europe. Lead times for stainless long products have been rep...Read More
Following a review of its weekly price assessments for stainless steel flat products, Metal Bulletin proposes to discontinue its weekly export price assessment for 2mm grade 304 cold-rolled stainless sheet fob Northern European ports.European exports of commodity-grade stainless steel products such as 2mm grade 304 cold rolled stainless sheet have fallen in recent years amid the strong rise of low...Read More