The export market for steel slab from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) region was quiet in the week to Monday November 8.Mills mainly held back from placing new offers, preferring to assess the market conditions, so no fresh deals were heard done.Meanwhile, the situation in the global market was mixed.In Europe, plate producers, which are the main consumers of CIS-origin slab in the re...Read More
The gap between offers and bids for long steel products from the Commonwealth of Independent States widened in the week to Monday November 8, with higher offers from Ukrainian mills but reduced availability of material.Russian mills were mostly absent from the export business due to the current favorable conditions in their local market.Meanwhile, bids from customers and estimates of workable pric...Read More
Modest gains were seen in base metals futures prices at the 5pm close of trading on the London Metal Exchange on Monday November 8 because of a weaker US Dollar Index, which supported price increases.Aluminium led the gains, its price increasing by almost 2% to $2,605.00 per tonne, up from $2,556.50 per tonne at Friday's 5pm close. This rise followed a 5% decline in the three-month price for the l...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday November 8 that are worth another look.The United States is looking carefully at steel projects in Southeast Asia in which China has invested, after US trade representative Katherine Tai said that she supported updating US trade laws to combat the circumvention of...Read More
Modest gains were seen in base metals futures prices at the 5pm close of trading on the London Metal Exchange on Monday November 8 because of a weaker US Dollar Index, which supported price increases.Aluminium led the gains, its price increasing by almost 2% to $2,605.00 per tonne, up from $2,556.50 per tonne at Friday's 5pm close. This rise followed a 5% decline in the three-month price for the l...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices were mostly stable on Monday November 8 amid continuing weak demand from Chinese steel mills, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $93.82 per tonne, up $0.68 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $94.55 per tonne, up $0.47 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $65.68 per tonne, down $0.10 per tonne65% Fe...Read More
London Metal Exchange futures prices remained under pressure from a strong US Dollar Index amid rising concerns over the potential impact on demand of a resurgence in Covid-19 in Europe and China.Zinc's three-month price was the most affected, down by 1.1% on Monday at 9am to $3,190 per tonne - from $3,228.50 per tonne last Friday. Last week, the galvanizing metal was down 4.7%, with trading...Read More
The domestic market for hot-rolled coil in Europe remained quiet on Monday November 8, with prices showing little change, sources told Fastmarkets.Producers were, however, looking to achieve higher prices for the first quarter of 2022 because of the surging costs for raw materials, transport and energy.Expected restocking activity at distributors was also supporting market sentiment. Notably, seve...Read More
Turkish steel mills were quiet at the beginning of the week but are expected to book more deep-sea cargoes for December shipment, market participants told Fastmarkets on Monday November 8.The most recent deep-sea trade was recorded at the end of the last week, when a steel mill in the Izmir region booked a Baltic Sea cargo consisting of 11,000 tonnes of heavy melting scrap 1&2...Read More
The publication of Fastmarkets' monthly blister copper refining charge for October was delayed due to a reporter error. Fastmarkets' pricing database has since been updated with the following price, originally scheduled to be published on last working day of October. Fasstmarkets' price assessment for opper blister 98-99% RC spot, cif China was $150-170 per tonne on Friday October 29 and as u...Read More
Aluminum producer Alcoa plans to restart some curtailed capacity at its Portland Aluminium joint venture in Victoria, Australia, with more production at the smelter set to come online in the third quarter of 2022, the company said on Sunday November 7.The process to restart the additional capacity, idled since 2009 and totaling 35,000 tonnes per year, will begin immediately, the United States-head...Read More
Swiss packaging company Aluflexpack has achieved Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI) Performance Standard Certification at its Drni?? production site in Croatia, and also Chain of Custody (CoC) Standard Certification at both Drni?? and Einsiesdeln in Switzerland, it was announced on Monday November 8.The company provides "flexible packaging" solutions for a number of international brands across...Read More
London Metal Exchange futures prices remained under pressure from a strong US Dollar Index amid rising concerns over the potential impact on demand of a resurgence in Covid-19 in Europe and China.Zinc's three-month price was the most affected, down by 1.1% on Monday at 9am to $3,190 per tonne - from $3,228.50 per tonne last Friday. Last week, the galvanizing metal was down 4.7%, with trading...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mainly weaker on the morning of Monday November 8, but those on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mainly firmer as they followed the strength seen on the LME on Friday.US Congress' passing of the long-awaited infrastructure bill bodes well for the metals Chinese trade data show a record surplus, but weaker than expected imports highlight weaker...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States moved back above $94 per cwt on Monday November 8, but most participants feel prices in this market are still trending downward as a whole.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $94.11 per hundredweight ($1,882.20 per ton) on Monday November 8, up by 1.38% from $92.83 per cwt on Friday and down by 0.59% from $94.67...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil increased across the European Union during the week to Friday November 5, despite slow trading activity in the spot market.Despite the lack of trading, sentiment remains positive in anticipation of restocking by distributors, upward pressure on prices from high energy and transport costs, and because of the agreement reached between the United States and the EU...Read More
Brazilian steel slab export prices remained stable in the week ended Friday November 5, with no fresh deals heard and negotiations for January shipments still proceeding at a slow pace.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel slab, export, fob main port Brazil, was $730-740 per tonne on Friday, unchanged from the previous week.The higher end of the assessment corresponded to prices in the...Read More
Details of new investment by Egypt's Ezz Steel, including the possible acquisition of a stake in another steel company, will be disclosed in a timely manner after financial evaluation and legal audit are completed, the company said in a statement to the country's stock exchange on Sunday November 7.There were rumors in the Egyptian steel market that Ezz Steel, the country's biggest steel producer,...Read More
Hong Kong-based scrap processor Chiho Environmental Group plans to expand its footprint among Chinese recycling operations with the opening of a new yard in the east of the country, the company said on Friday November 5.A recycling park in Taizhou in Zhejiang Province is the result of a joint investment totaling 243 million yuan ($38 million) by Chiho-owned firms Scholz and Chiho Tiande, Chiho sai...Read More
China's decarbonization drive could result in increased demand for graphite electrodes amid the global trend toward more steelmaking based on electric-arc furnaces (EAFs), although supply risks may continue in the near term against a backdrop of energy controls, sources have told Fastmarkets."[Increased] EAF [usage] could be a general trend for steelmaking in China, [because this] is what national...Read More