German flat steel producer Salzgitter has declared force majeure after a lightning strike over the weekend, the company's spokesman told Fastmarkets on Thursday June 10.The lightning strike on Saturday June 5 interrupted the power supply to the plant, and thus plant operations, market sources said."A lightning strike interrupted operations last Saturday. [But] we are back in operation and striving...Read More
Prices for steel billet imported into Egypt remained stable during the week to Thursday June 10 amid recovering demand, sources told Fastmarkets.New regulations for construction in the country that allow new building permits, in effect from June 1, have buoyed demand, sources said.New construction projects are still limited due to the detailed procedures to access permits but a partial removal of...Read More
Domestic steel rebar and wire rod prices in Turkey have remained mostly stable over the past week, market sources said on Thursday June 10.Despite recent price increases for Turkish scrap imports, long steel prices did not change in the country because of limited demand, Fastmarkets heard.Fastmarkets calculated the daily index for steel scrap, HMS 1&2 (80:20 mix), North Europe origin, cfr Turkey,...Read More
The emergence of an additional Wednesday deep-sea scrap purchase by a Turkish steel mill has helped to keep prices on a upward trend, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday June 10.The cargo from Canada was booked by a still mill in the Iskenderun region, comprising 9,500 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (95:5), 7,500 tonnes of rails and 12,000 tonnes of plate & structural (P&S) scrap at an average price of $...Read More
The latest deals for containers of steel scrap imported into Bangladesh over the past seven days have shown small price increases from deals in the previous week, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday June 10.Overall scrap demand in the country remained low, particularly given the start of the monsoon season this month, but sources said that buyers in the container market have been forced to raise...Read More
Iron ore prices rose on Thursday June 10, on support from increasing steel prices, sources said.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $216.84 per tonne, up $4.17 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $219.04 per tonne, up $4.33 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $191.90 per tonne, up $4.02 per tonne65% Fe Brazil-origin fines, cfr Qingdao: $246.10 per...Read More
Seaborne coking coal prices slightly increased in the cfr market and stayed flat in the fob market on Thursday June 10, with market sources reporting active restocking for domestic coking coal due to a supply shortage, which boosted market sentiment for both domestic and imported coking coal.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $168.68 per tonne, up $0.18 per tonnePremium hard co...Read More
Prices for steel scrap imported into China were unchanged on Thursday June 10 amid a lack of buying interest and few negotiations going on between buyers and sellers, sources said.Fastmarkets' daily price assessment for steel scrap, heavy recycled steel materials, cfr China, which takes into account prices at ports in eastern China, was $510-530 per tonne on Thursday, unchanged from a day earlier....Read More
Major Chinese steelmaker Jiangsu Yonggang is aiming to use more iron ore lump in its blast furnaces and to reduce its use of sinter fines, in line with China's drive to cut pollution, Fastmarkets understands.On June 7, the steelmaker signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Anglo-Australian mining giant Rio Tinto for on an iron ore lump re-screening project, with Rio Tinto's experts expecte...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices continued to trend upward on Thursday June 10 after trading activity picked up in response to rising futures.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 5,000-5,030 yuan ($782-787) per tonne, up by 30-40 yuan per tonneTrading houses expect spot rebar prices to keep rising on the bullish sentiment in the futures market. As such, they raised their procurement rates to stock up on...Read More
Nickel and copper were down the most on the London Metal Exchange on June 10 morning, although all prices fell ahead of the release of US consumer prices data later on Thursday.LME three-month nickel fell to $17,870.50 per tonne on Thursday at 9am, back to the same levels from the Monday close, following a 1% rise on Wednesday to $18,136 per tonne. The metal's price fell on Thursday after new...Read More
Iron ore prices pushed up on Tuesday June 8, despite sintering restrictions being imposed on steelmakers in China's steelmaking hub Tangshan, sources told Fastmarkets. Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $209.50 per tonne, up $7.08 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $211.81 per tonne, up $7.63 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $182.87 per tonne...Read More
China's stainless steel export market was inactive in the week to Wednesday June 9 amid concerns over the possibility of an export tariff being introduced in the country. Meanwhile, Indonesian suppliers took the opportunity to gain more orders.But the quieter market did not down export offers for Chinese stainless steel because China's domestic market remained strong, with prices narrowing upward...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 19.80-20.50 on Thursday June 10, 2021....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....Read More
Australian coking coal export prices rose to their highest in nearly two years on June 9, having trended upward since May.Fastmarkets' index for premium hard coking coal, fob DBCT hit $168.50 per tonne that day.Market sources have attributed the gains to increased speculation and a wide spread between cfr China and fob Australia markets.Speculative cargoes swap boosts market sentimentMore speculat...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 6 points in pre-opening trade.Investors are waiting for the June Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index to be released at 10:00 AM EDT. Consensus is an increase to 84.0 from 82.9 in May.Biogen added $4.74 to $419.45 after JP Morgan raised its target price from $269 to $435. Also, UBS upgraded the stock from Neutral to Buy.B...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday June 9 that are worth another look.Export prices for Chinese cold-rolled coil and hot-dipped galvanized coil largely trended downward over the past week due to limited trading activity in the spot market.Two Chinese investors...Read More
Prices on the London Metal Exchange were mostly unchanged at the close of trading on Wednesday June 9, with futures contracts sticking to a consolidation phase at high levels so far this week.Zinc's three-month price, at $3,019.50 per tonne, was up b only $2.50 per tonne from Tuesday's closing price, but was at its highest value at the 5pm close since June 2, when it closed at $3,082.50 per tonne....Read More
The US nickel market was active in the week to Tuesday June 8, with a consensus that falling supply and healthy spot demand will support the current premium range. US premiums poised for possible increase if miners' strike in Canada endures. Continued arbitrage losses push some Chinese traders away from nickel plate. European London Metal Exchange warehouse stocks fall 400 tonnes, but...Read More