London Metal Exchange base metals prices were mixed this morning, Monday September 7, as were pre-market major western equity index futures, while metals on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mainly firmer and Asian-Pacific equities were mixed too.* A better-than-expected US employment report on Friday led to a strong close for the base metals at the end of last week, but a weaker tone in equity m...Read More
Indian authorities have decided to slash export rebates, in a move which market participants expect will raise prices for steel shipped out of the South Asian nation, Fastmarkets understands.An Indian steel trader told Fastmarkets that a final decision on the matter was still under discussion, but he expected that the rebate he received on steel exports would be cut from a current 2.5-3% per trans...Read More
Member mills of the China Iron & Steel Association (Cisa) largely kept their crude steel production rates unchanged in late August from the preceding 10 days, but their finished steel inventories continued to drop, according to data released on Thursday September 3.August 21-31 outputCrude steel: 2.16 million tonnes per day, down by 0.04%Finished steel: 2.19 million tpd, up...Read More
Most Turkish flat steel prices increased in August 2020 and market sources expect further price increases to come amid global price rises, Fastmarkets heard on Thursday September 3.Turkish flat steel producers are fully booked until late-October, with trading sources reporting that the market was moderate for most of August because of the seasonal summer slowdown in Turkey and its neighboring coun...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of base metals analysts are ready to view, including an upgrade to our aluminium price forecasts.Aluminium: Price forecasts raisedWe correctly expected the macro reflationary theme to raise the prices for all base metals but, with it being the base metal with by far the weakest fundamentals, we had expected the price of aluminium to underperform relative...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.This month's key ferro-alloy forecast highlights:Prices across most ferro-alloy markets trended stable to lower in August as demand remained subdued in major markets, apart from China where steel output continues to rise at a rapid pace, supporting demand for ferro-alloys. As alloy makers seek to remedy supply/demand imbalan...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view. A look at stainless steel price movements through August reveals the ongoing battle being faced by stainless steelmakers in Europe and the United States while they try to pass on rising costs to consumers. In these regions, prices on most grades of stainless steel are little changed from July, rising by around 2% at most -...Read More
The three-month prices of all base metals listed on the London Metal Exchange rose on Friday September 4, with nickel and aluminium gaining the most.The LME three-month nickel price closed at $15,290 per tonne on Friday, after briefly reaching an intraday high of $15,325 per tonne, with 7,233 nickel lots traded over the day.Nickel was the best performer of the LME base metals in August, registerin...Read More
Copper concentrate treatment and refining charges (TC/RCs) hit new Fastmarkets record lows in the week to Friday September 4 after some smelters purchased cargoes for nearby arrival in the high $40s per tonne / 4 cents per lb. Smelters are said to be well stocked with concentrate, but deals reported to Fastmarkets with TCs between $47 and $49 per tonne indicate that those in need will have to pay...Read More
China's copper imports have fueled the metals roaring price recovery from multi-year lows in March, but the traders who had brought the material into the country say they are no longer buying, Fastmarkets heard.Records for monthly copper imports were initially smashed in June with 656,483 tonnes, only to be gazumped in July when 762,211 tonnes crossed the China border.This comes at a time when the...Read More
Key data from the pricing sessions in Europe, Asia and the United States for the week ended Friday September 4. China Rising seaborne manganese ore prices reflect miner deals at higher prices for October shipments. There was strong buying interest for portside manganese ore among alloy smelters, prompting traders to raise their offer prices. Manganese ore inventories at Tianjin a...Read More
Copper concentrate treatment and refining charges (TC/RCs) hit new Fastmarkets record lows in the week to Friday September 4 after some smelters purchased cargoes for nearby arrival in the high $40s per tonne / 4 cents per lb. Smelters are said to be well stocked with concentrate, but deals reported to Fastmarkets with TCs between $47 and $49 per tonne indicate that those in need will have to pay...Read More
An overview of the minor metals markets and their latest price moves.Read More
The European Commission unveiled an updated list of critical raw materials on Thursday September 3 that it aims to secure the supply of while avoiding over-dependence on third countries, alongside an action plan to create domestic supply chains for raw materials.Lithium, a material that is critical for the shift to a greener economy, has been added to this list for the first time. Lithium is a key...Read More
Global scrap prices have increased in the past week on stable demand from major importing countries such as Turkey and Vietnam. Many market participants in Asia expected the price uptrend to continue in the near term.Import price in Turkey reaches $300 per tonne cfrUS East Coast price surges upward by $11 per tonneTaiwanese buyers fail to achieve lower pricesVietnam spot liquidity limited on major...Read More
The price spread for UK inter-merchant light iron scrap widened over the week to Friday September 4, rising by ?5 ( ?$7) per tonne at the top end of the latest assessed range, with firm fundamentals and steady export demand encouraging active trading, industry sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel scrap 5C, loose old light, domestic, delivered inter-merchant, UK,...Read More
Turkish steel mills continued to book deep-sea scrap from various regions at fairly steady prices at the end of the week bringing the total to 11 for the week, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday September 4.A Marmara steel mill and one in the Izmir region each booked a Baltic Sea cargo at $299 per tonne cfr for HMS 1&2 (80:20) on Friday.Previous cargoes from the Baltic were booked at $299-300...Read More
London Metal Exchange base metals prices were firmer this morning, Friday September 4, but this appears to be early bargain-hunting/consolidation after Thursday's 1.5% average decline. Asian equities and base metals prices were weaker while they followed yesterday's weakness in western markets. We wait to see if this weakness was the result of some book squaring ahead of the much-watched monthly U...Read More
Key data from the Friday September 4 pricing session in London.Key drivers Cobalt metal inquiries showed a modest pick-up during the first few days of September, although some buyers were returning from the summer break and still adopting a cautious approach to restocking due...Read More
The European Commission unveiled an updated list of critical raw materials on Thursday September 3 that it aims to secure the supply of while avoiding over-dependence on third countries, alongside an action plan to create domestic supply chains for raw materials.Lithium, a material that is critical for the shift to a greener economy, has been added to this list for the first time. Lithium is a key...Read More