Miners China Moly and IX Metal have joined Glencore and Huayou's Fair Cobalt Alliance (FCA), a body whose aim is to professionalize the artisanal mining sector in the global heartland of cobalt production - the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)."[Because we are] a large industrial miner that maintains strict product control and custody procedures, artisanal and small-scale mining [ASM] sits outsi...Read More
The automotive industry is rapidly evolving toward an autonomous and electric future, and steel is well-prepared to grow alongside it, representatives from Nucor and Cleveland-Cliffs said during a panel at Fastmarkets' 2021 Steel Success Strategies Industry Briefing.Steel "offers an enormous combination of solutions that are easily implemented into the next version of vehicles," Dan Gordon, senior...Read More
Nickel continued to experience the strongest rebound on the London Metal Exchange on the morning of Tuesday June 22, while most metals also trended upward following last week's slumps. Nickel was up by 1.6% at 9am on Tuesday, at $17,730 per tonne. This adds to a 1.7% gain at the end of Monday, when the contract closed at $17,450 per tonne. The stainless steel additive was back to levels seen a wee...Read More
A summary of China's base metal imports for May 2021.Copper ore and concentrateMay total: 1.95 million tonnes, up by 1.2% month on month, up by 15.1% year on yearRefined copperMay total: 291,378 tonnes, down by 8.7% month on month, down by 4.7% year on yearCopper scrapMay total: 139,444 tonnes, down by 16.9% month on month, up by 100.8% year on yearBauxiteMay total:...Read More
Several idled aluminium smelters are scheduled to resume operations soon following a strong aluminum price on the Shanghai Futures Exchange, Fastmarkets was told on Tuesday June 22.One long-term idled aluminium smelter in Qinghai province - located in the northwest of China - has been checking its operation lines recently with an aim to restart the plant at the beginning of the third quarter, seve...Read More
The government of China is now acting on announcements it made in the week ended June 18 about intended sales of the country's metal reserves, which triggered a dramatic decline in prices.China's National Food & Strategic Reserves Administration (SRA) released notices on Tuesday June 22 that it intended to sell 20,000 tonnes of copper, 30,000 tonnes of zinc and 50,000 tonnes of aluminium in an ini...Read More
All three-month prices for base metals on the London Metal Exchange rose by about 1% for the second day in a row on Tuesday June 22, continuing their recovery from the weakness of the previous seven days.Nickel's three-month price rose by the greatest margin on Tuesday, by 1.6% to $17,750 per tonne, following Monday's 1.7% increase to $17,450 per tonne.The metal suffered a 7.2% decline last week t...Read More
Glencore will restart operations at its Mutanda copper-cobalt facility toward the end of 2021, and plans to return the asset to normal production in 2022, the global miner said on Tuesday June 22.Glencore placed the facility, which is in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), on care and maintenance in late 2019 following a slump in cobalt prices.Mutanda can produce around 25,000 tonnes per year....Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Europe remained in a wide range on Tuesday June 22, with some buyers ready to accept high prices for material with shorter lead times, sources told Fastmarkets.Northern European steelmakers have been reported to have good order books, and they have been holding back from making official offers. The region's mills were sold out of HRC until fourth-quarter roll...Read More
Offers of steel rebar and wire rod from the Commonwealth of Independent States were lowered somewhat over the week ended Monday June 22, with the intention of drawing in customers amid a lack of demand and growing competition with Turkish suppliers.Turkish mills were offering rebar for export at $730 and $760 per tonne fob on an actual weight basis at the end of last week, compared with $750-780 p...Read More
Join Fastmarkets and the London Metal Exchange on Tuesday June 29 for a webinar about European aluminium premiums ahead of the launch of the LME's new cash-settled futures contract.The LME will launch its new European duty-paid aluminium premium cash-settled contract on July 19, which is settled against Fastmarkets' benchmark aluminium P1020A premium, in-whs dp Rotterdam.The LME previously la...Read More
Seaborne premium hard coking coal prices continued to rise in the cfr market due to tight supplies, while prices were largely stable in the fob market, with market participants adopting a wait-and-see attitude, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday June 22.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $177.87 per tonne, up $0.59 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $290.19 per t...Read More
All three-month prices for base metals on the London Metal Exchange rose by about 1% for the second day in a row on Tuesday June 22, continuing their recovery from the weakness of the previous seven days.Nickel's three-month price rose by the greatest margin on Tuesday, by 1.6% to $17,750 per tonne, following Monday's 1.7% increase to $17,450 per tonne.The metal suffered a 7.2% decline last week t...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Tuesday June 22 that are worth another look.Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Europe remained in a wide range on June 22, with some buyers ready to accept high prices for material with shorter lead times,...Read More
Aluminium premiums diverged again on Tuesday June 22, with Rotterdam premiums increasing, while the Japanese premium fell and the US premium was unchanged.Rotterdam premiums boosted by demand, logisticsMJP ticks down, South Korea unchangedUS Midwest premium steady for three weeksStrong demand, high freight rates boost Rotterdam premiumsPremiums in Rotterdam continued to climb, due to strong demand...Read More
Brazilian domestic flat steel prices have reached a ceiling this month, with no additional room for price increases, according to Carlos Loureiro, president of national flat steel distributors' association, Inda.The price level reached a maximum after increases of around 10% were applied in early June, and distributors are already having problems passing on the adjustment to their clients.Fastmark...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Tuesday June 22 that are worth another look.Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Europe remained in a wide range on June 22, with some buyers ready to accept high prices for material with shorter lead times,...Read More
China imported 111,432 tonnes of steel scrap in May, surpassing the total of 109,978 tonnes of its imports of the steelmaking raw material in the first four months of 2021, according to the latest Chinese customs data.Last month's imports are also 56% higher than those imported in April.Of the total, 79,327 tonnes - or 71.2% - originated in Japan. South Korea remained China's second-largest scrap...Read More
German carmaker BMW has set up a closed-loop material cycle for production tools made of tungsten, it said.Starting in June, BMW will begin collecting secondary tungsten obtained from old drill and milling bits at its plants in Germany and Austria that will be recycled and used to manufacture new industrial machinery.These BMW plants generate almost nine tonnes per year of scrap from carbide tools...Read More
Mexico's ferrous scrap prices increased further in the week to Friday June 18, with buyers continuing to compete for material, especially the higher grades.Fastmarkets assessed the steel scrap No1 busheling, consumer buying price, delivered mill Monterrey at 11,600 pesos ($578) per tonne on June 22, up by 400 pesos from 11,200 pesos a week earlier. This marked the fourth consecutive...Read More