Copper's price fall and a higher US dollar index were the main factors in a decline in London Metal Exchange base metals prices for a fourth day on the morning of Thursday June 17, with most down by at least 1%.The three-month copper contract on the LME was at $9,459.50 per tonne at 9am London time on Thursday, down by 2.1% from its $9,667 per tonne closing price on Wednesday. The contract fell to...Read More
The whole London Metal Exchange complex fell on Thursday June 17 due to a high US dollar, with zinc and lead the hardest hit.The US Dollar Index touched 91.93 on Thursday, its highest level since April 13. This followed a more hawkish view expressed by the US Federal Reserve regarding inflation and interest rates, delivered on June 17.The three-month price of zinc fell the furthest, to $2,911.50 p...Read More
Volkswagen Group is seeking partnerships with battery raw material producers in order to vertically integrate and achieve security of supply and competitive prices for its minerals needs, a spokesperson for the German automaker told Fastmarkets on Thursday June 17.This is in line with the company's strategy to move forward with the electrification of its fleet. Besides gaining security of supply,...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in China's domestic market edged higher on Thursday June 17 while the ferrous complex rose across the board on supply concerns, sources told Fastmarkets.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 5,480-5,500 yuan ($853-856) per tonne, up by 20-40 yuan per tonne.Spot prices climbed up on Thursday, while the most-traded HRC contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange clawed back about 90...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were lower this morning. S&P 500 futures were down 30 points in pre-opening trade.Volume on U.S. equity, futures and options exchanges is expected to surge. Today is "quadruple witching day" when June equity and index options and futures expire. Adobe added $10.54 to $561.90 after reporting higher than consensus second quarter revenues and earnings. Target on the stoc...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of base metals analysts are ready to view, including an upgrade to our aluminium price forecasts.Aluminium: Price forecasts raisedWe correctly expected the macro reflationary theme to raise the prices for all base metals but, with it being the base metal with by far the weakest fundamentals, we had expected the price of aluminium to underperform relative...Read More
China produced about 326.29 million tonnes of unprocessed coal in May 2021, up by a slight 0.6% year on year but down by 1.8% from April. Coal production has been capped by frequent inspections from central and local authorities at major coal mines in northern China in April and May to ensure safety measures and environmental protection measures are being followed, sources said. Some mines which h...Read More
Vale is testing the use of unmanned trains at its Mariana iron ore complex to transport ore to the Timbopeba plant in a bid to reverse a recent state-ordered stoppage, it said on late Wednesday June 16.The Brazilian mining company expects the tests - of an automated train that will cover around 16 km in Brazil's southeastern Minas Gerais state, where Timbopeba is located - to last one or two month...Read More
Copper's price fall and a higher US dollar index were the main factors in a decline in London Metal Exchange base metals prices for a fourth day on the morning of Thursday June 17, with most down by at least 1%.The three-month copper contract on the LME was at $9,459.50 per tonne at 9am London time on Thursday, down by 2.1% from its $9,667 per tonne closing price on Wednesday. The contract fell to...Read More
A summary of London Metal Exchange warrant premiums from across the globe for the week to Wednesday June 16.Please click...Read More
China's domestic stainless steel prices rose in the week ended Wednesday June 16, building upon gains accrued since late May, but market participants expect the upward momentum to halt in the near term. One reason behind this bearish view is the weakness exhibited in nickel futures in recent days.The three-month nickel contract on the London Metal Exchange ended the official trading session on Wed...Read More
Trading activity in the European heavy plate market slowed in the week to Wednesday June 16 and buyers stayed in wait-and-see mode, sources told Fastmarkets."We have almost zero buying and zero selling activity this week," a German distributor said.Availability is also limited from European suppliers."The delivery time from German steelmakers is October-November. On top of that, Salzgitter is faci...Read More
Brazilian apparent steel consumption soared by 83% year on year in May, according to figures from national steel institute, A??o Brasil.Apparent steel use reached 2.50 million tonnes in May compared with 1.37 million tonnes in the same month in 2020, the institute said on Thursday June 17.Consumption of flat-steel products rose 98.90% to 1.45 million tonnes from 730,000 tonnes in the same comparis...Read More
Iron ore prices went up on Thursday June 17, supported by improved liquidity in the physical markets, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $220.82 per tonne, up $6.74 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $222.01 per tonne, up $5.46 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $188.48 per tonne, up $3.56 per tonne65% Fe Brazil-origin...Read More
The Cobalt standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb trade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparencyinto the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies.Fastmarkets assessed Cobalt standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb at 20.20-20.95 on Thursday June 17, 2021.Purchase...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.These include an increase in our copper mine disruption estimates, upgrades to our production outlook for Indonesian nickel pig iron (NPI), a smaller refined zinc surplus, and an upgrade to our zinc price forecasts.Aluminium: Big disconnect between price and fundamentalsAluminium has extended its uptrend on the London Metal...Read More
Turkish steel mills extended their silence in the deep-sea scrap market on Thursday June 17, with market participants reporting no new bookings for the second day in a row and describing the market as "quiet."Two cargoes heard booked earlier in the week, but brought scrap prices down by $10 per tonne. This week, Turkish steel mills have mostly focused on selling rebar in the export market, with Fa...Read More
Rebounds were under way in the base metals complex in London this morning, Friday June 18, while in Shanghai the base metals mostly reflected the weakness seen on the London Metal Exchange on Thursday.* The more hawkish stance from the United States Federal Reserve on Wednesday lifted the dollar but has weighed on sentiment...* ...as has China’s decision to release state reserves of copper, a...Read More
Enabling large-scale expansion of solar power production capacity is a crucial part of the transition to a sustainable future for energy, but its prospects of growth rest on the current and future availability of key minerals and metals. Governments and organizations the world over are busy setting ambitious targets to cut carbon footprints and restrict global warming to less than 2 degrees Celsiu...Read More
The Cobalt alloy grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lbtrade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparencyinto the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies.Fastmarkets assessed Cobalt alloy grade, in-whs...Read More