Canada-headquartered Lithium Americas has entered into a definitive arrangement agreement with Argentina-based producer Millennial Lithium to acquire all of the outstanding shares of the latter for approximately $400 million, the company said on Wednesday November 17. On November 1, Millennial Lithium announced that it had received a rival takeover bid from Lithium Americas. As such, Millennial Li...Read More
Bangladeshi import steel scrap prices have fallen over the past week despite a continued rise in offer prices for rebar and domestic shipbreaking scrap in the country, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday November 18.?EUR?Bangladeshi import prices ease downward?EUR?Taiwanese buyers secure containerized scrap at $445-452 per tonne cfr?EUR?Lack of demand for scrap in China due to hot metal being mor...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday November 18 that are worth another look.Swedish steelmaker SSAB has announced a further two partnerships involving its fossil-fuel-free steel, to commence in 2026, the company said in separate announcements this week.Production of key battery raw materials cobalt...Read More
The aluminium industry needs to support the introduction of a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) to help finance the sector's push to decarbonization, the chief executive officer of United States-based Century Aluminum said.Jesse Gary told the virtual Goldman Sachs global metals and mining conference that a CBAM would need to be extended to cover scope 2 emissions to create the pricing resp...Read More
Chinese nickel sulfate producers face difficult annual contract negotiations for 2022, with upstream miners taking an aggressive stance while downstream battery precursor material producers are hinting at lower demand amid plans to implement integrated operations.The Chinese nickel sulfate price has undergone considerable volatility in 2021, climbing in August to its highest since Fastmarkets bega...Read More
European hot-rolled coil prices remained broadly stable on Thursday November 18 on limited trading, but sentiment for the first quarter of 2022 has turned cautiously optimistic, sources told Fastmarkets. Limited tonnages of December-rolling HRC are still available at lower prices, but for January next year mills are targeting higher levels to cover surging c...Read More
Seaborne coking coal prices in the cfr China market dropped further on Thursday November 18 after domestic cargoes plunged due to weak demand, while the fob Australia coking coal market continued to be quiet without firm buying interest, market sources said.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $523.84 per tonne, down $26.35 per tonneHard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $348.75 per...Read More
Chinese nickel sulfate producers face difficult annual contract negotiations for 2022, with upstream miners taking an aggressive stance while downstream battery precursor material producers are hinting at lower demand amid plans to implement integrated operations.The Chinese nickel sulfate price has undergone considerable volatility in 2021, climbing in August to its highest since Fastmarkets bega...Read More
Passenger car sales in the EU declined month-on-month in October 2021 due to the continuing global shortage of semiconductors for use in onboard electronics, making it the fourth consecutive month to show a double-digit percentage decrease.In October, EU passenger car sales decreased by 30.26% year-on-year to 665,001 units, the lowest October volume since 1995, the European Automotive Manufacturer...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday November 18 that are worth another look.Swedish steelmaker SSAB has announced a further two partnerships involving its fossil-fuel-free steel, to commence in 2026, the company said in separate announcements this week.Production of key battery raw materials cobalt...Read More
Global steel prices were likely to soften further at the end of 2021 because of lower raw material prices and uncertain market sentiment, panelists said on Monday November 15 during Fastmarkets' International Ferro-alloys Conference in Prague.In the middle of 2021, global steel prices reached a level not seen since the global financial crisis in 2008, after which there was a long-lasting downtrend...Read More
Key data from Fastmarkets' pricing session in Europe on Wednesday November 17.Key drivers European ferro-titanium spot prices were unchanged for the fifth week in a row after a tender for annual delivery in 2022 from Korean steel major Posco was settled in the current spot price range, according to sources. There were no reported spot trades over the week to Wednesday November 17. Ferro-titanium s...Read More
Steel rebar prices have been broadly stable in Southern Europe over the past week despite a slowdown in market activity.But producers continue to mull another price increase before Christmas, source told Fastmarkets on Wednesday November 17.Fastmarkets' assessment of the price of steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, delivered Southern Europe was ?,?770-790 ($874-897) per tonne on Wednesday, wi...Read More
Rio Tinto is to add capacity at its AP60 aluminium smelter in Quebec, increasing output by 45% in the first major investment in Canada's smelting production hub in a decade, the company said.The mining company plans to spend $87 million to increase its low-carbon aluminium production at the smelter by adding 16 new smelting cells, boosting annual production by 26,500 tonnes to 86,500 tonnes.The ne...Read More
Fastmarkets' Ferrous Analytics report helps subscribers keep track of hot metal costs and steel production spreads in China, along with key pricing components of the steelmaking raw materials supply chain in Asia.Read More
Base metals futures on the London Metal Exchange were largely lower at the 5pm close on Wednesday November 17, succumbing to a strong US dollar index and other headwinds.The US dollar index remained at its highest since July 2020, touching 96.27 during early trading before stepping back to 95.83 at the close."It seems that the upside momentum has stalled in several markets over the last 24 ho...Read More
Fastmarkets' Ferrous Analytics report helps subscribers keep track of hot metal costs and steel production spreads in China, along with key pricing components of the steelmaking raw materials supply chain in Asia.Read More
The price of steel hollow sections in Europe moved down on Wednesday November 17 due to ongoing weak demand, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel sections (medium) domestic, delivered Northern Europe was ?,?1,130- 1,170 ($1,283-1,329)per tonne on Wednesday, compared with ?,?1,150-1,250 per tonne one week previously.Hollow section prices have remained weak due to lower f...Read More
A summary of London Metal Exchange warrant premiums for the week to Wednesday November 17.Please click...Read More
Spot prices for hot-rolled coil in China inched lower on Wednesday November 17 after a small rally in the futures market failed to provide sufficient upward momentum to the spot market.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 4,680-4,740 yuan ($734-743) per tonne, down by 10-40 yuan per tonneThe most-traded HRC contract the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose on Wednesday, snapping three consecutive trading d...Read More