Buyers of steel rebar and billet in the United Arab Emirates preferred to wait before placing new orders because of uncertainty about prices during the week ended Tuesday June 8, sources have told Fastmarkets.Local rebar producers were expected to announce new prices next week.Local retail prices for rebar were currently lower than those offered by local producers. In any case, most buyers have hi...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.United States sheet prices hit record highs again in May, with upward momentum carrying into June. Actual US HRC prices averaged $1,712 per tonne in May, largely in line with our forecast of $1,698 per tonne. Strong underlying supply-and-demand conditions both in the US and globally are supporting prices as well as long lead...Read More
The export prices of hot-rolled coil from the Commonwealth of Independent States fell during the week to Monday June 7 on new sales and uncertainty in the global market due to a lack of clarity on the imposition of an export tax on steel in China, sources said.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel hot-rolled coil, export, fob Black Sea, CIS was $995-1,020 per tonne on June 7, down from $1...Read More
Strong demand and tight supply supported aluminium premiums at recent multi-year highs across the globe on Tuesday June 8, although levels for those in South Korea were unchanged for two months.End-user interest and insufficient supply offset London Metal Exchange backwardation in Rotterdam Japanese premium holds at two-year high on fresh deals South Korea stable for eight weeks amid little market...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories from Tuesday June 8 that are worth another look.A rise in Covid-19 cases in China's Guangdong province in recent weeks has led to tighter controls and rigorous testing at the huge Yantian International Container Terminal (YICT), causing extended delays...Read More
With the exception of tin that was perched just below recent multi-year highs and aluminium that was little changed, base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were weaker this morning, Tuesday June 8. Markets quiet but mixed, waiting for fresh directionUS Dollar Index edging higher and US 10-year treasuries driftingBase metalsLME three-month base metals prices were mixed; tin was up by 1% at...Read More
Prices for steel scrap imported into China were unchanged on Tuesday June 8 amid scarce spot market activity.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 Tuesday, unchanged from a day earlier.No new bids were heard on Tuesday, with the latest bid coming in on Mond...Read More
Turkish steelmakers resumed their deep-sea scrap purchases to refresh stocks after some fresh finished steel sales were concluded, market participants told Fastmarkets on Tuesday June 8.A steel mill in the Marmara region booked a Baltic Sea cargo, comprising HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $501 per tonne and bonus at $511 per tonne cfr. The cargo breakdown was not clear at the time of publication.This was the...Read More
Mexican ferrous scrap prices continued to increase during the week ended Friday June 4, with demand for steel and raw materials remaining strong.Some scrap buyers accepted price adjustments to their buying prices for certain grades, with sellers using higher-priced deals to leverage negotiations with buyers who insisted on lower prices. As a result, more deals were reported at higher lev...Read More
Trafigura's head of metals and minerals, Amin Zahir, is leaving the trading company, Fastmarkets heard on Tuesday June 8.The move will mean that Trafigura's metal unit heads - Kostas Bintas, Socrates Economou, Philippe Muller and Gonzalo De Olazaval - will report directly to chief executive officer Jeremy Weir, who himself has a background in metals.Trafigura made record profits last...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories from Tuesday June 8 that are worth another look.A rise in Covid-19 cases in China's Guangdong province in recent weeks has led to tighter controls and rigorous testing at the huge Yantian International Container Terminal (YICT), causing extended delays...Read More
Several provinces in China have been hit by power cuts in the past two months due to electricity shortages and energy controls, resulting in reduced production and price fluctuations for metals and ferro-alloys, including aluminum, zinc, silicon metal, ferro-chrome and silico-manganese. Supply of thermal power, the major method of power generation in the country, has been affected after coal price...Read More
Key data from the pricing sessions in Asia, Europe and the United States in the week to Tuesday June 8.ChinaRecent power cuts in Inner Mongolia and Guangxi provinces limited the availability of domestic ferro-chrome and supported the spot market.The spot market strength domestically and in other parts of Asia spurred positivity in the imported charge chrome market, although liquidity issues remain...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories from Tuesday June 8 that are worth another look.A rise in Covid-19 cases in China's Guangdong province in recent weeks has led to tighter controls and rigorous testing at the huge Yantian International Container Terminal (YICT), causing extended delays...Read More
Tin was the best performer on the London Metal Exchange on June 8 due to its constrained global supply situation being set to worsen amid disruption from MSC, while the rest of the complex finished positively on afternoon US trade despite a broader consolidation.LME tin's three-month price closed at $31,223 per tonne on Tuesday, jumping up by 2.3% from Monday's closing price of $30,525 per tonne,...Read More
Strong demand and tight supply supported aluminium premiums at recent multi-year highs across the globe on Tuesday June 8, although levels for those in South Korea were unchanged for two months.End-user interest and insufficient supply offset London Metal Exchange backwardation in Rotterdam Japanese premium holds at two-year high on fresh deals South Korea stable for eight weeks amid little market...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories from Tuesday June 8 that are worth another look.A rise in Covid-19 cases in China's Guangdong province in recent weeks has led to tighter controls and rigorous testing at the huge Yantian International Container Terminal (YICT), causing extended delays...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil were mostly stable across Europe on Tuesday June 8, on support from a continuing shortage of material, sources told Fastmarkets.The availability of domestic HRC has remained tight but lead times are no longer being extended, sources told Fastmarkets.Buyers have also been cautious about making new deals in fear of being left with stocks of high-priced coil if pri...Read More
The United States government has published a sweeping review of US supply chains, proposing measures to increase domestic production of a number of key minerals and products. These measures include a proposed tariff on neodymium magnet imports.In February 2021, recently inaugurated US President Joe Biden indicated that there would be a government review of the resilience of critical minerals suppl...Read More
Steel billet producers in the Commonwealth of Independent States have kept their offer prices unchanged despite limited trading activity, Fastmarkets heard on Tuesday June 8.There was market chatter about a sale of Ukraine-origin billet to the Philippines at $635-640 per tonne fob (about $695-700 per tonne cfr) this week, but no details were released by the time of publication.A bid for billet fro...Read More