The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts is ready to view.Stainless steel prices and margins for stainless steel producers have risen notably over the past few months in both Europe and the United States, but there are now signs that the rally is petering out.A clear reason for the halt to rising prices comes from the near 20% drop in nickel prices seen in late February/early March,...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were little changed at the 5pm close of trading on Thursday June 10, with slight increases for aluminium and nickel, while prices dipped elsewhere on the complex.The three-month copper price fell by 0.9% to $9,890 per tonne during Thursday trading, down from $9,978.50 per tonne at Wednesday's 5pm close, despite reaching an intraday high of $9,992.50...Read More
Turkish steel billet prices in both the local and export markets have decreased over the past week on limited demand, market participants said on Thursday June 10.Long steel prices in the country, on the other hand, increased slightly during the week because of higher materials costs.Most market participants in Turkey expected billet prices to increase in the next few weeks as well, because of inc...Read More
The metals and mining industry is unlikely to invest significantly in Chile until uncertainty surrounding the country's fiscal framework is resolved, the chief financial officer of Freeport-McMoRan said. Kathleen Quirk, also president of the United States-based copper producer, said that Freeport was watching developments in Chile before making any further investment decisions. "I believ...Read More
Mining companies will need to see higher copper prices before they fell any incentive to push forward with new projects, the chief financial officer of US producer Freeport-McMoRan has said.Higher prices will also be needed to attract more sources of copper scrap, Kathleen Quirk told Deutsche Bank's 12th annual global basic materials virtual conference on Thursday June 10."We believe we'll have to...Read More
Marex will not proceed with its plans to list its shares on the London Stock Exchange, the brokerage firm confirmed to Fastmarkets on Thursday June 10.Marex announced its intention to hold an initial public offering (IPO) on the LSE on May 14, when commodity prices were in a rally that had taken copper and iron ore prices to all-time highs just a few days...Read More
After a one-month consultation period, Fastmarkets has amended the timing specifications for its assessment of Italian SHG (special high grade) zinc premiums.The frequency of the assessments, which are currently weekly, will move to a fortnightly basis after the next assessment date on June 15. The change is due to the Italian zinc market being largely centered around long-term contracts...Read More
The European Commission (EC) plans to set a carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) for imports of some goods, including steel and aluminium, to prevent the risk of carbon leakage, according to a draft of the EC's proposal seen by Fastmarkets on June 10.The mechanism will integrate into the EU's current system that it established for greenhouse gas emissions allowance trading via the application...Read More
Commodities trading house Trafigura believes a slowdown in Chinese demand growth for metals will fail to dent rising prices, while also announcing record profits in the first half of 2021."What's perhaps most striking about the recovery in metals demand is that, for the first time in at least a decade, this is not just a China story," Trafigura's chief economist Saad Rahim said."If fact, if anythi...Read More
Steel reinforcing bar prices in the United States increased again on Wednesday June 9, with another round of mill hikes expected soon.Fastmarkets' assessment for steel rebar, fob mill US was $44.50 per hundredweight ($890 per short ton) on Wednesday, up 1.14% from $44 per cwt the previous week.US marketThe increase follows recent mill hikes, rising shredded scrap prices in Chicago and Detroit...Read More
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