Brazilian automotive production dropped by 4.16% year on year in July amid a continuing shortage of auto parts, according to national automotive association Anfavea.Light vehicle output reached 163,600 units last month, compared with 170,700 units in the same period in 2020, Anfavea said on Friday August 6. Production and sales continue to be affected by a global shortage of semiconductor chips, w...Read More
German industrial group Thyssenkrupp has agreed the sale of its Infrastructure business to compatriot company FMC Beteiligungs KG, an entrepreneur-led investment firm, Thyssenkrupp said on Thursday August 5.The deal was expected to be closed later this year but will be subject to approval from merger control authorities as well as Thyssenkrupp's own supervisory board. The financial details of the...Read More
Turkey's domestic transaction prices for hot-dipped galvanized and pre-painted galvanized coil prices were mostly stable in the week ended Friday August 6 due to limited trading, sources told Fastmarkets.Domestic buyers have mainly been holding back from acquiring substantial material volumes, waiting for the trend to settle.Fastmarkets' assessment for steel HDG coil domestic, exw T...Read More
Steel scrap prices in the key global markets moved down over the week to Friday August 6 with demand for material remaining tepid.Turkish mills make fresh bookings at lower pricesUS export prices consistent in recent bookingsVietnam scrap prices down on weak demandChinese import prices fall alongside domestic pricingTaiwanese scrap prices continue downtrend on poor demandIndian scrap offers withdr...Read More
Turkey's domestic hot-rolled coil prices were largely stable in the week to Friday August 6 despite limited trading activity, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel hot-rolled coil, domestic, exw Turkey was $1,010-1,050 per tonne on Friday, widening downward by $10 from $1,020-1,050 per tonne on July 30.Turkish HRC producers were offering material at $1,020-1,...Read More
The export market for pig iron from the Commonwealth of Independent States dropped during the week to Thursday August 5 on oversupply and short lead times. Fastmarkets assessed the price for high-manganese pig iron, export, fob main port Black Sea, CIS at $550-580 per tonne on Thursday, down from $570-590 per tonne the previous week.The market level in the United States, which is the main pig...Read More
The US Dollar Index was at its highest since July 27 and was weighing on London Metal Exchange base-metal prices in the afternoon of Friday August 6, with all metals ending the week below where they were on Monday.The US index touched a week-and-a-half high of 92.84 on Friday afternoon, following the release of positive employment data in the country.There were 943,000 jobs added to the US economy...Read More
The tight Chinese domestic tin market may loosen after China's Yunnan Tin, the world's largest tin producer, resumed production in early August after its annual maintenance, sources said.Although a tin shortage remains in China, sources expect tightness to alleviate in the near future.Sources estimate that Yunnan Tin's maintenance reduced tin output by approximately 1,500-2,000 tonnes, althou...Read More
Iron ore prices increased slightly on Friday August 6 after a slump on Thursday, although overall sentiment remains bearish, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $172.51 per tonne, up $0.96 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $173.53 per tonne, up $0.77 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $139.23 per tonne, up $2.95 per ton...Read More
The US Dollar Index was at its highest since July 27 and was weighing on London Metal Exchange base-metal prices in the afternoon of Friday August 6, with all metals ending the week below where they were on Monday.The US index touched a week-and-a-half high of 92.84 on Friday afternoon, following the release of positive employment data in the country.There were 943,000 jobs added to the US economy...Read More
An overview of the new energy materials markets and their price moves in the week to Friday August 6.Susan Zou, Yingchi Yang and...Read More
Spot buying appetite from Chinese copper smelters remained low in the week to Friday August 6, with standard tonnages being traded in the mid to high $50s per tonne range.Deals for blended cargoes of lower-grade copper concentrate were reported in the low $60s per tonne. Regional power restrictions in China have led to copper smelters bringing forward their maintenance plans which created reduced...Read More
Spot differentials for low-carbon aluminium in Europe were stable during July, but some deals and offers for 2022 supply were reported well above current spot levels.Fastmarkets assessed the aluminium low-carbon differential value-added product (VAP), Europe at $10-15 per tonne Friday August 6, unchanged from the previous assessment on July 2.Offers for 2022 VAPs were reported between $20 and abov...Read More
The tight Chinese domestic tin market may loosen after China's Yunnan Tin, the world's largest tin producer, resumed production in early August after its annual maintenance, sources said.Although a tin shortage remains in China, sources expect tightness to alleviate in the near future.Sources estimate that Yunnan Tin's maintenance reduced tin output by approximately 1,500-2,000 tonnes, althou...Read More
Chinese copper smelter Guangxi Nanguo has brought forward its maintenance schedule because the local government has stepped up its measures to restrict power consumption by industrial facilities, Fastmarkets has learnt.The private smelter, which has capacity for 300,000 tonnes per year, will be shut for 45 days across August-September and therefore will not be procuring extra copper raw material o...Read More
Deliverable stocks of base metals diverged in the week to Friday August 6, with zinc leading the growth and tin topping the decline.Zinc inventories totaled 39,982 tonnes in the week to August 6, up by 3,758 tonnes (10.4%) from the previous week. R&S Logistics warehouse in Shanghai reported the largest inflow, with volumes rising by 1,490 tonnes (68.3%) week on week to 3,671 tonnes, according to t...Read More
Fastmarkets has identified a necessary clarification to the nickel sulfate specification with regard to delivery time.The delivery time for Fastmarkets' nickel sulfate ex-works China price assessment is seven days, which was not reflected in the specifications when the price was launched in July 2018.Fastmarkets confirms that the specifications read as follows, with the clarification in italics:MB...Read More
Brazilian slab export prices were stable in the week ended Friday August 6, with few deals booked.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel slab, export, fob main port Brazil was unchanged at $920-930 per tonne on Friday, though prices are down from $975-985 per tonne on July 23.Brazilian slab export prices have been affected by a similar drop...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States slipped after touching $94 per hundredweight ($1,880 per short ton) for the second time ever on Thursday August 5, but remained above $93 per cwt for an eighth consecutive business day while buyers grumbled about the lack of spot material.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $93.46 per cwt ($1,869.20 per ton) on F...Read More
South American flat steel import prices did not show a clear trend in the week to Friday August 6, with some products being offered higher - especially due to tax rebate cuts in China - while others were down due to discounts or the absence of more expensive material in the market.Demand also took a hit during the period. Some customers were concerned that a Chinese export tax for hot-rolled produ...Read More