Standard-grade cobalt was trading at a premium over alloy grade for the first time since February 2019 on Friday January 29 amid demand for briquettes and rallying payables for cobalt hydroxide. Some market participants had identified the potential for the standard grade price to gain ground ahead of alloy-grade in recent weeks due to demand for metal from China's cobalt salts sector, but the two...Read More
As competition in the global steel markets remains fierce, Fastmarkets provides an update on the new, progressing and closed trade cases from around the world in January 2021.The case list below includes only updates. For other continuing cases from 2020, see the updates for December,...Read More
The price of tin on the London Metal Exchange closed above $23,000 per tonne on Monday February 1, while aluminium's forward price was under the most pressure from the rising US Dollar Index, dropping by more than 1% from last week's closing prices.Tin's three-month price rose by 1.4% to $23,103 per tonne from Friday's 5pm closing price of $22,779 per tonne, ending the day above the $23,000 per to...Read More
Prices on the London Metal Exchange were mixed on Monday February 1 morning, with nickel the only metal to make a substantial gain of nearly 1%, given the weaker-than-expected Chinese manufacturing data released on Sunday. Nickel's three-month price was up 0.95% at 9am on Monday to $17,860 per tonne, from Friday's closing price of $17,691 per tonne.The metal fell 3% over the last week of January,...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were up across the board this morning, Monday February 1, this despite weaker-than-expected manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) data out of China over the weekend.But perhaps most noteworthy has been the 8% rally in spot silver that has surpassed $29 per oz to challenge last August's high. March tin lower on Shanghai Futures Exchange despi...Read More
The spodumene price cif China posted a sharp month-on-month increase at the end of January after a pick-up in customer inquiries, and market participants expect further rises against a backdrop of bullish supply-demand for the raw material and rising lithium chemical prices in China.Fastmarkets assessed the spodumene 6% Li2O min, cif China price at $450-460 per tonne on Wednesday January 27,...Read More
Standard-grade cobalt was trading at a premium over alloy grade for the first time since February 2019 on Friday January 29 amid demand for briquettes and rallying payables for cobalt hydroxide. Some market participants had identified the potential for the standard grade price to gain ground ahead of alloy-grade in recent weeks due to demand for metal from China's cobalt salts sector, but the two...Read More
Glencore International has agreed a letter of intent for cobalt metal supply to battery cell producer Freyr, the company said on Monday February 1.The Swiss trader-producer will supply up to 3,700 tonnes of high-purity cut cobalt cathode produced at its Norwegian operations, Nikkelverk, to Freyr's planned facilities in Mo i Rana in Norway, it said without disclosing the time period for the intende...Read More
Hot-rolled coiled prices in the United States held essentially flat to begin February.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $56.56 per hundredweight ($1,131.20 per short ton) on Monday February 1, up by 0.1% from $56.50 per cwt on Friday January 29 and an increase of 2.7% from $55.07 per cwt one week earlier. Inputs were collected in a range of $54...Read More
Fastmarkets publishes trade logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparency into the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US averaged $56.15 per hundredweight ($1,123 per short ton) for the week ended Friday January 29, up by 0.5% from an average of $55.87 per cwt the previous week. The index wa...Read More
Some European steel producers pushed their official hot-rolled coil offer prices upward in the week ended Friday January 29, with buyers likely to accept some transaction price increases in the short term.On January 28, ArcelorMittal increased its official offers for HRC to ?,?750 ($910) per tonne ex-works across the EU, up by ?,?20 per tonne from previous offers. And Swedish steelmaker SSAB has b...Read More
Prices for domestic merchant bar quality (MBQ) steel in the United States rose for the third month in a row in January, while import prices remained unchanged after climbing in late December 2020.Fastmarkets' monthly assessment for steel bar 2 x 2 x 1/4 -inch angle merchant products, fob mill US was at $44.30 per hundredweight ($886 per short ton) on Friday January 29, up by 4.7% from $42.3...Read More
The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) export wire rod price recovered somewhat in the week to Monday February 1 on demand in European markets, sources told Fastmarkets.Offers of Ukraine-origin material were heard within the range of $700-730 per tonne fob Black Sea, depending on destination, while Russia-origin material was available within the range of $690-702 per tonne fob Black Sea, sou...Read More
Domestic rebar prices in Russia's Central Federal District around Moscow declined in the week to Monday February 1 due to slow end-user demand and falling exports, several sources told Fastmarkets....Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday February 1 that are worth another look.Chinese nickel sulfate prices have made steady gains since the start of 2021, rising again last week to set the highest level since Fastmarkets began tracking the market in July 2018.More than 67,000 lots of the Singapore Exchange's 65% Fe iron ore swaps...Read More
As competition in the global steel markets remains fierce, Fastmarkets provides an update on the new, progressing and closed trade cases from around the world in January 2021.The case list below includes only updates. For other continuing cases from 2020, see the updates for December,...Read More
Iron ore prices fell on Monday February 1, sources told Fastmarkets, due to weak demand and limited trading liquidity, despite the potential impact of severe weather on supplies from Australia. Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $157.07 per tonne, down $1.47 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $157.77 per tonne, down $1.28 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade...Read More
China's domestic price was stable on Monday February 1 due to a combination of dropping demand and high production costs, while the export price fell on market participants' concerns of a potential cut of the export rebate. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 4,280-4,310 yuan ($663-667) per tonne, unchanged Rain in eastern China has dampened end-user demand for rebar used in the construction indust...Read More
Following extensive market engagement, Fastmarkets is extending the consultation period for amendments to the specification of its daily price for steel billet, import, cfr Southeast Asia to provide additional time for market participants to submit feedback. The original proposal consultation, which started on December 30 and can be found here, was originally scheduled to end on February 1, but wi...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.The conequences of the Covid-19 pandemic on energy demand affected oil and gas prices through much of 2020 and weighed on drilling rates and demand for oil-country tubular goods (OCTG) in most regions.These effects were most likely to continue well into 2021 and perhaps longer, according to Fastmarkets OCTG Intelligence Serv...Read More