Serbia's RTB Bor copper smelter, owned by Chinese miner Zijin, has been suspended for a reconstruction project due to excessive sulfur dioxide emissions, according to local media reports. The suspension came after the Bor city government filed a criminal charge against the Chinese state-owned miner after registering SO2 levels that exceeded limits on three days in a row last week, Serbian Monitor...Read More
An overview of the battery raw materials markets and their latest price moves.Read More
Key data from the pricing sessions in Europe, Asia and the United States for the week ending Friday September 25.China Tight spot availability continued to consolidate the domestic market with prices remaining firm amid positive sentimentSome mills raised their October tender prices for 72% ferro-silicon, while the market was waiting for tender prices from major steel mills ...Read More
Fastmarkets copper concentrate treatment charges/refining charges (TC/RC) index is largely unchanged from a week ago when it rebounded to a month-and-a-half high.Market sources still believe smelter purchases are in the high $40s per tonne/4 cents per lb to the low $50s per tonne/5 cents per lb, with less tendered tonnages available this week.The spot market is less vibrant with Japanese holidays....Read More
Key data from the pricing sessions in Europe, Asia and the United States for the week ending Friday September 25.China The seaborne price for low-grade manganese ore declined amid deteriorating market sentiment and falling alloy futures and portside ore prices. Deals concluded at the start of the week stopped the high-grade market falling despite weakening sentiment weighing on buying appetite. Po...Read More
An overview of the minor metals markets and the reasons for any price moves.Read More
An overview of the battery raw materials markets and their latest price moves.Read More
The Turkish steel producers broke their two-weeks-long silence in the deep-sea scrap markets on Friday September 25, securing two cargo deals, while prices in the major markets were slightly down on limited demand.Turkish mills return to the market for two Baltic Sea cargoesUS East Coast quiet on Turkey's absenceVietnamese buyers book Japanese scrap on dipping offersTaiwanese import prices down on...Read More
A Turkish steel producer broke the silence in the deep-sea scrap market on Friday September 25 after two quiet weeks, securing deals for two cargoes, sources told Fastmarkets.A steel mill in northern Turkey booked a Baltic Sea cargo, comprising 12,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20), 10,000 tonnes of shredded, 1,000 tonnes of bonus and 1,000 tonnes of busheling at an average price of $299 per tonne...Read More
Prices for steel scrap cargoes imported into South Korea fell again over the last seven days amid weakening Japanese offer prices and stifled demand, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday September 25.Japanese exporters reduced offer prices over the last week due to a lack of buying interest from Vietnam and Taiwan at the previous levels, sources said, while smaller suppliers focusing on Korea had al...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mixed but little changed this morning, Friday September 25, this after once again running into dip-buying on Thursday.A late rally in US equities on Thursday lent support to broader markets.US Congress is working on a $2.2 trillion stimulus package that could be voted on next week.Asian-Pacific equities were for the most part stronger this morni...Read More
An overview of the battery raw materials markets and their latest price moves.Read More
Lithium prices are in a bottoming-out phase but are expected to struggle for some time in the foreseeable future, according to William Adams, Fastmarkets head of battery raw materials and base metals research."Before we start to see prices rise, we need to see inventory [levels] come down to a more normal level," Adams said during a virtual lithium market presentation, hosted by investment bank Mo...Read More
Prices for flat-rolled steel imported into South America took a downturn in the week to Friday September 25 with Chinese mills presenting lower offers amid residual negotiations for November shipments.The region's import market followed a broader downtrend reported for the Chinese domestic market in the past few weeks. That trend reversal was also supported by reduced liquidity, due to November-sh...Read More
Poland's steel rebar producers have pushed for new price increases this week on good buying activity, rising raw materials costs and a lack of competitive imports in the market, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday September 25.The rebar market in the country moved up this week on fresh offers from domestic mills, encouraged by good buying, rising rolling costs and tighter availability of rebar with...Read More
Soft demand sent China's domestic rebar prices falling this week, with those in the eastern region being down by 60-80 yuan per tonne despite holding steady on Friday September 25. DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,600-3,640 yuan ($528-534) per tonne, unchangedNorthern China (Beijing) weekly assessment: 3,570-3,590 yuan per tonne, down by 50 yuan per tonne End users kept their rebar invent...Read More
The Turkish steel producers broke their two-weeks-long silence in the deep-sea scrap markets on Friday September 25, securing two cargo deals, while prices in the major markets were slightly down on limited demand.Turkish mills return to the market for two Baltic Sea cargoesUS East Coast quiet on Turkey's absenceVietnamese buyers book Japanese scrap on dipping offersTaiwanese import prices down on...Read More
Early during the week to Friday September 25, pig iron import deal prices in the United States overtook the market level in China, which had been driving the global market since March, but eased later in the assessment period. Fastmarkets' price assessment for pig iron, import, cfr Gulf of Mexico, US softened to $380-387 per tonne on Friday from $385-387 per tonne one week earlier. One spot b...Read More
A Turkish steel producer broke the silence in the deep-sea scrap market on Friday September 25 after two quiet weeks, securing deals for two cargoes, sources told Fastmarkets.A steel mill in northern Turkey booked a Baltic Sea cargo, comprising 12,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20), 10,000 tonnes of shredded, 1,000 tonnes of bonus and 1,000 tonnes of busheling at an average price of $299 per tonne...Read More
Export prices for Brazil-origin slab narrowed upward on Friday September 25 due to producers withdrawing low-priced offers and focusing on markets where demand is higher.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel slab, export, fob main port Brazil increased to $480-490 per tonne on September 25, from $450-490 per tonne a week before.Offers from slab producers were reported within the range of...Read More