Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange mostly edged higher at the close on Friday November 5, after a week of volatility across the complex.The aluminium three-month price stabilized after falling 3.8% on Thursday. It closed at $2,556.50 per tonne, from $2,554 per tonne the previous day.The metal was once again the most traded with 21,689 lots traded on LMESelect by the 5pm close."Maybe [...Read More
An overview of the specialty steel raw materials markets in Europe and their latest price moves.Janie Davies, Dalila Ouerghi,...Read More
Low-carbon aluminium differentials in Europe have widened after this week's United Nations environmental conference, COP26, put sustainability in the spotlight.Fastmarkets assessed the aluminium low-carbon differential P1020A, Europe, at $0-10 per tonne, up from $0-7 per tonne in the previous assessment on October 1."We would be looking for $10 per tonne minimum right now, and I think that is tota...Read More
The Brazilian federal government has decided to cut by 10% the import duties imposed on most materials under its tariff system, the ministries of economy and foreign relations said in a joint statement on Friday November 5.Among the changes, duties on the majority of flat-rolled and long steel products will be cut to 10.8%, from 12% currently. Import taxes on stainless steel will drop to 12.6% fro...Read More
An overview of the energy transition raw materials markets and their price moves in the week to Friday November 5.Susan Zou, Yingchi Yang and...Read More
Sellers of physical copper are holding out for a higher premium for 2022 contracts in the United States.No major deals were reported by the end of the American Copper Council (ACC) fall meeting in Miami, Florida this past week, although there was talk of a US copper premium in the 10-cents-per-lb range.In the US, Fastmarkets assessed the copper grade 1 cathode premium, ddp Midwest US at 8-9 cents...Read More
Brazilian aluminium producer Companhia Brasileira de Alum?-nio (CBA) signed a deal to acquire an 80% share of Alux do Brasil, a local secondary alloy producer, for 110 million Reais ($20 million), it said on Thursday November 4.The company will be able to increase its recycling capacity by 20% with the new asset, as well as enter a new business segment of selling secondary aluminium alloys mo...Read More
Fastmarkets opened a consultation on October 1, inviting feedback on its IOSCO-audited non-ferrous materials methodologies in line with our annual methodology review process.The consultation, which closed on October 31, sought to ensure that the specifications and methodology for our audited alumina, aluminium, cobalt, copper, lithium and manganese ore prices continue to reflect the physical marke...Read More
Coated steel coil prices decreased in Turkey during the week ended Friday November 5, while some buyers expect further price falls, sources told Fastmarkets.Buyers expect more price decreases because of recent price falls for hot-rolled coil and weak demand, sources said.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel hot-rolled coil, domestic, exw Turkey was $910-930 per tonne on November 5, narro...Read More
Domestic prices of hot-rolled coil in Europe were fairly stable on Friday November 5, reflecting limited market activity, sources told Fastmarkets.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 on Section 23...Read More
ArcelorMittal will suspend production as its Sestao plant in Spain until early 2022 to carry out upgrade works to double capacity, a company representative told Fastmarkets.With the company moving forward scheduled engineering works by a month due to high electricity costs, steel production at Sestao will stop from the end of November until early next year, the spokesperson said."Production...Read More
The Commonwealth of Independent States' (CIS) billet export price declined on Friday November 5 amid limited buying interest; most producers continued to hold back from trading.Trading activity remained limited in the Black Sea basin this week amid bearish sentiment.Softening scrap and long steel prices in Turkey, one of the key buyers of CIS billet, has made buyers cautious."The steel market is s...Read More
Some flat steel prices decreased in Turkey during the week ended Friday November 5; buyers were hesitant to book large tonnages because of the uncertainty, sources told Fastmarkets.Falling prices in China are behind the price drop; prices from the Commonwealth of Independent States have also decreased recently.Turkish flat steel producers accepted orders for January production during the week...Read More
Buyers in the Philippines have purchased imports of steel billet at largely flat prices despite the crash in the Chinese market this week, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday November 5.The Chinese ferrous futures markets have continued to nosedive this week, further reducing the prices in the country's domestic steel billet spot market. On Friday, key China market participants told Fastmarkets tha...Read More
The import pig iron market in the United States went up during the week to Friday November 5 amid bullishness from suppliers.Fastmarkets' assessment of the price for pig iron, import, cfr Gulf of Mexico, US was $550-570 per tonne on Friday, up from $545-555 per tonne a week earlier.There was talk in the market that two Russia-origin cargoes were sold to the US at $568-580 per tonne cfr,...Read More
The price of 18/8 (grade-304) stainless steel scrap in the United Kingdom domestic market decreased during the week to Friday November 5 on lower nickel costs, but the losses were capped by tight supply, sources told Fastmarkets.Indeed, in the European market, prices were largely unchanged, despite the lower nickel costs, because material is so tight.Fastmarkets assessed stainless steel scrap 18/8...Read More
The United Kingdom inter-merchant light-iron steel scrap spot price was stable during the week to Friday November 5 on tight availability and steady dockside prices into export markets such as Turkey and the Indian subcontinent.With international scrap markets trading in United States dollars, the sterling/dollar exchange rate has a major effect on the UK's steel exports. Weaker sterling makes UK...Read More
Turkish steel producers ended the week with a total of five deep-sea scrap cargoes, with prices increasing throughout the week, market sources told Fastmarkets on Friday November 5.A steel mill in the Izmir region booked a Baltic Sea cargo consisting of 11,000 tonnes of heavy melting scrap 1&2 (80:20) at $500 per tonne and 15,000 tonnes of shredded and 3,000 tonnes of bonus at $520 per tonne cfr l...Read More
Prices for shredded steel scrap imported into Pakistan and India dipped on Friday November 5 after trading slowed for both markets, sources told Fastmarkets.PakistanFastmarkets calculated its weekly steel scrap, shredded, index, import, cfr Port Qasim, Pakistan, at $557.89 per tonne on Friday, compared with $563.74 per tonne one week previous.Deals were heard at $552-562 per tonne in the reported...Read More
Prices for steel scrap imported into Bangladesh were boosted this week by a strong domestic market in the South Asian country, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday November 5.Bangladesh's local shipbreaking scrap prices were heard this week at 53,500-54,700 taka ($613-627) per tonne ex-yard including VAT, which a leading Bangladeshi trader said was an all-time high.It surpassed the previous record h...Read More