Key data from Fastmarkets' pricing session in London on Friday June 4.Key drivers Molybdic oxide prices surge on continued concerns over nearby availability. A tight container market with uncertain shipment timings, and concerns over availability of material coming from...Read More
Prices for steel scrap imported into China were stable on Friday June 4 amid very few negotiations going on between buyers and sellers in the market.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 Friday, unchanged from a day earlier.The highest bids on Friday were h...Read More
An accident at Kaohsiung port, Taiwan, in which a tower crane collapsed on Thursday June 3 will likely have minimal impact on discharge rates for containerized ferrous scrap in the coming days, market sources told Fastmarkets.The ship-to-shore gantry crane crashed to the ground after the empty 316-meter-long containership, OOCL Durban, collided with the 32,270-gross-tonne Yong Hung, anchored at Pi...Read More
Key data from Fastmarkets' pricing sessions in China, Europe and the United States on Friday June 4. China Seaborne low- and high-grade manganese ore markets jumped as much as 12.31% after miners raised offers for July shipment amid protracted high freight rates and a strengthening South African rand. Sentiment was boosted by news that Ningxia province, China's second largest silico-ma...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday June 3 that are worth another look.Russia's largest steelmaker, Novolipetsk Steel (NLMK), will start producing hot-briquetted iron (HBI) and increase its iron ore and pellet output by 2027-2028, the company told Fastmarkets.BHP, the majority owner and operator of...Read More
Positive employment data from the United States boosted the Dollar Index to its highest level since mid-May and triggered a selloff on the London Metal Exchange on Thursday June 3, with most metals' prices going down by 2-3%.Copper's three-month contract on the LME was most affected on Thursday, with its closing price falling by 3.5% to $9,788.50 per tonne at the 5pm close, from $10,147 per tonne...Read More
The world's second-largest copper mine, currently in expansion, will send 40% of its copper concentrate output in Phase 1 to a domestic smelter in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), with negotiations to sell their copper output still underway, sources said.Kamoa Copper, operating out of Kamoa Kakula mine, signed a ten-year agreement with Lualaba copper smelter (LCS), of China Nonferrous Metal...Read More
Ukraine's Privat Group, a major producer of manganese alloys, hit a monthly production target for May of almost 59,000 tonnes at its Nikopol ferro-alloys plant, up by about 2,000 tonnes from April amid strengthening European prices this year, an industry source said.Privat is also considering whether to start an additional silico-manganese furnace at Nikopol, which would use low-phosphorus slag as...Read More
The world's second-largest copper mine, currently in expansion, will send 40% of its copper concentrate output in Phase 1 to a domestic smelter in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), with negotiations to sell their copper output still underway, sources said.Kamoa Copper, operating out of Kamoa Kakula mine, signed a ten-year agreement with Lualaba copper smelter (LCS), of China Nonferrous Metal...Read More
Chinese exporters of ammonium paratungstate (APT) held their offer prices firm this past week due to expectations for the yuan to continue strengthening against the dollar, even though overseas markets remained quiet.As a result, Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for tungsten APT 88.5%WO3 min, fob main ports China was $265-275 per metric tonne unit (mtu) on Wednesday June 2, unchanged from a we...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday June 3 that are worth another look.Russia's largest steelmaker, Novolipetsk Steel (NLMK), will start producing hot-briquetted iron (HBI) and increase its iron ore and pellet output by 2027-2028, the company told Fastmarkets.BHP, the majority owner and operator of...Read More
Turkish steel producers extended their silence in the deep-sea scrap import markets amid weakening demand for finished long steel products, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday June 3.The most recent deep-sea trade was concluded at the end of last week, when a steel mill in the Marmara region booked a US cargo, comprising HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $503 per tonne and shredded scrap at $513 per tonne cfr.S...Read More
The world's second-largest copper mine, currently in expansion, will send 40% of its copper concentrate output in Phase 1 to a domestic smelter in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), with negotiations to sell their copper output still underway, sources said.Kamoa Copper, operating out of Kamoa Kakula mine, signed a ten-year agreement with Lualaba copper smelter (LCS), of China Nonferrous Metal...Read More
Prices for steel scrap imported into China edged up on Thursday June 3 amid improving sentiment in the domestic market, 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, up by $10-15 from Wednesday.Many Chinese mills raised their purchase price...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange and Shanghai Futures Exchange were generally weaker on Thursday June 3 morning, although nickel bucked the trend on both exchanges.Brent crude oil continues to rally, reaching $71.71 on Thursday morning.China's Caixin services purchasing manager's index eases to 55.1 in May, from 56.3 in April.Base metalsLME three-month base metals prices were genera...Read More
Domestic European prices for hot-rolled coil were fairly stable day-on-day on Thursday June 3, supported by a persistent material shortage and strong demand, sources told Fastmarkets.The majority of Northern European producers were reported to be sold out of third-quarter-rolling coil, and suppliers in the region were ready to pay higher prices for material with earlier shipment.Italian producers,...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in China's domestic market trended higher on Thursday June 3, following gains in the futures markets, but export prices dropped due to weak demand. DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 5,550-5,600 yuan ($869-876) per tonne, up by 30-70 yuan per tonne.With ferrous metals prices rising across the board, the most-traded HRC contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange for October del...Read More
China's customs authorities will no longer require imports of some hot-rolled and cold-rolled coil to undergo inspections from June 10, the General Administration of Customs said on Tuesday June 1.The products affected, under the 10-digit Harmonized System (HS) code, include:7208261000 Other high-strength HRC of a thickness of 3mm or more but less than 4.75mm 7208269000 Other HRC of a thickness...Read More
Steel reinforcing bar prices in the United States increased again on Wednesday June 2, with the most recent hike from domestic producers accepted by the market.Fastmarkets' assessment for steel rebar, fob mill US was $44 per hundredweight ($880 per short ton) on June 2, up 0.57% from $43.75 per cwt the previous week.US marketThe most recent round of mill hikes - led by Commercial Metals Co and fol...Read More
Prices for steel billet imported into Egypt decreased during the week ending Thursday June 3 because of global price falls, although demand for rebar was better, sources have told Fastmarkets.Global prices for billet have been decreasing recently, because of limited buying by customers in China.Fastmarkets' daily steel billet index, export, fob Black Sea, CIS, was $653 per tonne on June 2, falling...Read More