The three-month nickel price on the London Metal Exchange fell to $15,910 per tonne during morning trading on Tuesday March 9, while the aluminium price slid by 1%, with consolidation mode still in force across the complex as a number of macroeconomic factors affect sentiment.Nickel's decline comes after a 0.6% rise at Monday's close, when it stood at $16,340 per tonne. The metal bottomed at $15,6...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) in Northern Europe increased further day on day on Tuesday March 9, supported by reduced availability, sources have told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets calculated its daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe, at ?,?756.25 ($898.28) per tonne on Tuesday, up by ?,?2.50 per tonne from ?,?753.75 per tonne on March 8.The index was also up by ?,...Read More
The flat steel import market in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia was in a state of uncertainty in the week to Tuesday March 9, with buyers expecting prices to rise because of high production costs, sources told Fastmarkets.The main cause for concern was the prospect of an export tax rebate cut in China, which is one of the main exporters of flat steel to both countries.Offers from India,...Read More
Import prices for steel rebar and billet in the United Arab Emirates have increased this week but local rebar prices fell because producers gave discounts, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday March 9.The country's steel producers were offering rebar at 2,530-2,545 dirhams ($689-693) per tonne ex-works.Local demand for rebar was limited during the week, because of a lack of new projects. Rebar deal...Read More
Geert Van Poelvoorde has been named chief executive officer of ArcelorMittal Europe, the company announced on Tuesday March 9.The move follows the appointment last month of Aditya Mittal as CEO of ArcelorMittal, having previously held the position at ArcelorMittal Europe.Van Poelvoorde was previously CEO of...Read More
Domestic prices for flat steel in Russia's Central Federal District around Moscow edged up in recent deals, supported by improved buying appetites and surging exports, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday March 9.Hot-rolled sheetBuying activity in the region has started to recover with trading sources noting "higher shipments" over the past week."Mills are saying April volumes will be limited becau...Read More
Domestic steel rebar prices in Russia's Central Federal District around Moscow moved up in the week to Tuesday March 9, after mills increased their offers in response to improving demand, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, cpt Moscow, Russia was 51,000-52,000 roubles ($685-698) per tonne, including 20% value-added tax, on March 9...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices dropped on Tuesday March 9 due to trading houses' demand for destocking and the futures' price loss, sources said.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 4,700-4,720 yuan ($721-724) per tonne, down by 40 yuan per tonneSales volume did not climb up too much in early March, compared to late February, due to the frequent price changes and the bad weather so trading houses' reb...Read More
Turkish steel producers continued to book deep-sea scrap cargoes for April shipment, with prices making a downward correction amid increased supplies, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday March 9.A steel mill in the Izmir region booked a US cargo, comprising 18,000 tonnes of shredded and 12,000 tonnes of bonus at an average price of $467 per tonne on Saturday March 6.The same mill, then, booked ano...Read More
An overview of China's coking coal imports for the full year of 2020.China imported 72.6 million tonnes of coking coal in the year 2020, down by 2.5% from 74.5 million tonnes in 2019.The country's total coking coal imports in 2020 were valued at nearly 59.1 billion yuan ($9.1 billion), down by 16.4% from a total worth of near 70.7 billion yuan in 2019.China imported 23.8 million tonnes...Read More
The weaker Chinese yuan and Japanese yen have dampened scrap spot trading prices this week, market sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday March 9.The news of new restrictions in the key steel making region of Tangshan also made sentiment turn bearish, sources said."Offers are lower because of the weaker currencies in east Asia so buyers are bidding lower already," a trader in east Asia said.The Japan...Read More
Iron ore prices largely retreated on Tuesday March 9 due to there being the most strict emissions restrictions in Tangshan since 2017, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $164.41 per tonne,down $9.93 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $164.67 per tonne,down $9.96 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $153.04 per tonne,down...Read More
China's hot-rolled coil prices plunged in the afternoon of Tuesday March 9 following a slump in the iron market amid the country's enhanced efforts to rein in production in Tangshan city.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 4,850-4,960 yuan ($744-761) per tonne, down 20-100 yuan per tonneWhile sellers in the spot market secured some orders at 4,940-4,960 yuan per tonne in the morning, they had to cut...Read More
Canada's coking coal exports to China increased by a fifth in 2020 amid a "verbal ban" imposed by Chinese authorities on cargoes from Australia late last year.Shipments from Canada amounted to 3.96 million tonnes, up by 21% from a year earlier, according to data released on March 1 by the Port of Vancouver.China imported a total of 72.63 million tonnes of coking coal in 2020, down by 3% from 74.49...Read More
Base metals prices on both the London Metal Exchange and the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mixed this morning, Tuesday March 9, with prices generally consolidating after recent weakness, while there are cross currents in the form of bond yields, stimulus and inflation expectations affecting sentiment. Brent crude oil prices dip back below $70 per barrel after Monday's move above $71 per barrelInf...Read More
More than a year after the Covid-19 pandemic began, investors' appetite in the battery raw materials sector has increased, moving away from precious metals such as gold, but it has yet to be seen if that interest will result in more supply, participants in a Fastmarkets webinar heard on Thursday March 4."What is an interesting dynamic is that, when Covid-19 came in, everyone looked to gold when cu...Read More
The Cobalt alloy grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lbtrade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparencyinto the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies.Fastmarkets...Read More
The Cobalt standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb trade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparencyinto the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies.Fastmarkets assessed Cobalt standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb at 25.30-25.80 on...Read More
Chinese battery materials producer Xiamen Tungsten will temporarily suspend its lithium cobalt oxide (LCO) operations in late April, a source from the company told Fastmarkets on March 9.The suspension at Xiamen Tungsten's LCO battery material operation in Sanming City, Fujian province, will last over 10 days starting from late April...Read More
A diverse set of requirements from drivers of electric vehicles (EVs) will make for a "mixed bag" of battery chemistries employed by automakers, attendees at a Fastmarkets webinar heard on Thursday March 4. In a poll carried out during the webinar, "Europe's position in the battery supply chain," 27.72% of respondents said easy access to charging points was the foremost requirement for EV users in...Read More