US Midwest aluminium premiums were likely to stay at elevated levels on continuing strength in physical demand and the continuation of trade tariffs, the chief financial officer of Alcoa has said.According to William Oplinger, the Midwest premium was currently 27 cents per lb, a situation that was likely to continue provided the current factors bullish remained in place."Assuming strong demand and...Read More
Two Chinese investors into Kamoa Kakula copper mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have signed offtake agreements for phase 1 output, operator Ivanhoe Mines said on Wednesday June 9.CITIC Metal (HK) Limited and Zijin Mining's subsidiary Gold Mountains (HK) International Mining Co will each have access to 50% of Kamoa Kakula's copper concentrate and blister copper, Ivanhoe said The offta...Read More
Zinc producers in China's southwestern province of Yunnan should be able to fully resume their operations by mid-June, sources said.Yunnan will remove its power restrictions by the end of June that have stunted local zinc output, the provincial energy bureau said.A few zinc smelters in Yunnan have already resumed production, however, sources that spoke to Fastmarkets said.Production capa...Read More
Rising storage and logistics costs sent the US lead premium to an all-time high on Tuesday June 8, while Chinese zinc market participants expect domestic supply to rebound when the Yunnan government ends the cap on power consumption for manufacturing in three weeks. The US 99.97% lead premium reached a new record high, supported by rising logistics costs. Power limits in China are due to en...Read More
Prices for steel hollow sections in Europe were unchanged on Wednesday June 9 following recent stability of feedstock costs and uncertainty over the upcoming European Commission safeguard decision, sources told Fastmarkets. Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel sections (medium), domestic, delivered Northern Europe was ?,?1,320-1340 ($1,607-1,631) per tonne on June 9, unchanged week on week...Read More
Iranian steel billet export prices increased in week to Wednesday June 9, with several deals heard in the market, but slab export prices fell, sources told Fastmarkets.Last week, Iranian mills were waiting for some clearer price direction from China, and one order was even canceled in response to domestic billet prices in China dropping to 4,730 yuan ($747) per tonne on May 27.But domes...Read More
European steel H-beam prices reached new highs on Wednesday June 9, with mills continuing to push through successful increases, sources have told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel beams, domestic, delivered Northern Europe, was ?,?970-1,000 ($1,181-1,218) per tonne on Wednesday, up from ?,?940-970 per tonne one week earlier.Some mills remained out of the market, with full...Read More
Steel wire rod prices in the north of Europe were broadly stable at high levels during the week to Wednesday June 9, with more rises expected due to supply tightness, sources said.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel wire rod (mesh-quality), domestic, delivered Northern Europe was unchanged week on week at ?,?830-850 ($1,011-1,035) per tonne on Wednesday.Several bookings were reported in...Read More
Stainless steel scrap prices in the United States rose again over the past week amid big gains in the ferrous market and while nickel prices have continued to hover just above the $8-per-lb ($17,640-per-tonne) threshold."We can thank the iron market for the latest stainless price increase, especially since the London Metal Exchange nickel continues to struggle to move further to the upside," one d...Read More
Turkish steel mills continued their deep-sea scrap purchases for July shipment at slightly higher prices on Wednesday June 9, having only just resumed buying activity on Tuesday after a near-two-week break, market participants told Fastmarkets.A steel mill in the Marmara region booked a Baltic Sea cargo, comprising HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $498 and bonus scrap at $508 per tonne cfr.The same mill also bo...Read More
Fastmarkets' index of the 63% Fe Australia-origin lump ore premium, cfr Qingdao, hit a record-high on Wednesday June 9 amid strong activity on a trading platform.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $212.67 per tonne, up by $3.17 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $214.71 per tonne, up $2.90 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $187.88 per tonne, up...Read More
Seaborne premium hard coking coal prices remained largely stable in both the cfr and fob on markets Wednesday June 9, with most market participants on the sidelines, source said.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $168.50 per tonne, up $0.20 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $282.87 per tonne, up $0.20 per tonneHard coking coal, fob DBCT: $145.43 per tonne, up $3...Read More
Prices for steel scrap imported into China were unchanged for a fourth consecutive day on Wednesday June 9 despite the June Kanto Tetsugen auction result inching up by ?362 ($3) per tonne from last month.The Kanto Tetsugen, which is a cooperative of scrap dealers in the Tokyo region, closed its monthly H2-grade scrap export auction on Wednesday with the winning bid price at ?49,195 per tonne fas...Read More
A major Japanese steelmaker will hike its offers for August-shipment hot-rolled coil amid tight supply and high raw materials prices, a source close to the company told Fastmarkets.The steelmaker will increase its offer to $1,100-1,200 per tonne cfr Southeast Asia, widening up by $50 per tonne compared with July-shipment materials. It will also increase its offer to $1,200-1,300 per tonne cfr to o...Read More
China's domestic hot-rolled coil prices trended higher on Wednesday June 9 amid a rallying futures market sparked by concerns over the supply of raw materials.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 5,530-5,550 yuan ($865-868) per tonne, narrowing upward by 30-80 yuan per tonne.The most-traded HRC futures contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange reached an intraday high of 5,400 yuan per tonne on Wedne...Read More
Nickel gained the most in percentage terms during morning trading on the London Metal Exchange on Wednesday June 9, while other base metals were mostly unchanged from Tuesday at high levels.The LME three-month nickel price reached $18,130 per tonne on Wednesday morning, up from its previous close at $17,942 per tonne. The contract rose to a three-month high of $18,475 per tonne on June 3 - its hig...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices picked up on Wednesday June 9 as a result of futures gains leading to stronger demand, market sources said.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 4,960-5,000 yuan ($776-782) per tonne, up by 40-50 yuan per tonneRebar futures staged a slight rebound on Tuesday and Wednesday, following a large drop on Monday, which market participants said was a "reasonable price change".The...Read More
LME base metals have looked tired, having lost their upward momentum in the past few days, but underlying support looks plentiful, with all the base metals on the SHFE being in positive territory this morning, Wednesday June 9. US 10-year treasury yields have fallen, not on haven buying, but because the market seems more sanguine that central banks will not rock the boat anytime soon......but will...Read More
An overview of the specialty steel raw materials markets in Europe and their latest price moves.Ewa Manthey, Charlotte...Read More
An overview of the consumer electronics markets and their latest price moves.Dalila Ouerghi and Cristina Belda...Read More