Prices in Turkey for steel rebar and wire rod have increased over the past week thanks to rising imported scrap costs and improving demand, sources said on Thursday September 3.A steel mill in the Marmara region was heard selling 52,000 tonnes of rebar to Hong Kong at $443 per tonne fob on an actual weight basis, while it also sold some 58,000 tonnes of rebar to West and North Africa at $450 per t...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices were up on Thursday September 3 amid market anticipation of a healthy demand outlook for steel, trade sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $129.92 per tonne, up $2.61 per tonne.62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $130.17 per tonne, up $2.27 per tonne.58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $115.23 per tonne, up $4.01 per...Read More
Seaborne coking coal prices remained relatively stable on Thursday September 3 amid a lull in transactions, while Indian demand for seaborne materials in the spot market will increase after monsoon season, a source said. Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $106.22 per tonne, up $0.12 per tonne Premium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $114.43 per tonne, down $0.01 per tonneHard co...Read More
A stable domestic market for hot-rolled coil in China on Thursday September 3 led exporters to raise their minimum threshold for transaction prices.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 4,040-4,050 yuan ($591-593) yuan per tonne, unchangedPrices were stable in eastern China, with a trader there saying that she had received more bids during the day than on Wednesday.She believes gains in the futures ma...Read More
Chinese battery materials producer GEM has signed an eight-year nickel and cobalt supply contract with Indonesia's Halamahera Persada Lygend (HPAL), starting from 2021.This procurement scheme, seen by Fastmarkets, specifies eight-year totals for battery-grade nickel and cobalt raw materials, with nickel content totalling no less than 74,400 tonnes and no more than 178,560 tonne...Read More
The three-month nickel price on the London Metal Exchange was the laggard during morning trading on Thursday September 3, with price action correcting by more than 3% despite both outflows and freshly canceled material, while tin was the only metal to hold recent price gains against subdued buying sentiment. Nickel's outright price on the LME was recently trading at $15,195 per tonne, falling from...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices failed to increase on Thursday September 3 despite a strengthening of the futures and billet markets, with inventory levels continuing to rise in the past week.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,670-3,700 yuan ($537-541) per tonne, unchangedThis month's expected rise in demand has yet to take place due to unfavorable weather affecting the construction sector in China...Read More
Markets were mixed this morning, Thursday September 3, with the base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange generally firmer, albeit in fairly light volumes.Markets are still underpinned by the prospect of more stimulus from the United States, once Congress can agree on a figure, but some of the metals are starting to look a bit tiredChina's Caixin services purchasing managers' index (PMI) at...Read More
The Cobalt alloy grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lbtrade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparency into the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies. Read More
The Cobalt standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb trade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparency into the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies. Fastmarkets assessed Cobalt...Read More
Key data from Fastmarkets' pricing session in London on Wednesday September 2.Key drivers Antimony prices made further gains in Europe on higher replacement costs from China. Producers were unwilling to cut their price expectations, a stance reinforced by the depreciation of the Chinese yuan...Read More
Key data from the Wednesday September 2 pricing session in London.Key drivers European prices followed the Chinese market higher after domestic suppliers in China raised their offer prices significantly following substantial gains in the futures market. Suppliers were reluctant to sell large...Read More
After a consultation period, Fastmarkets has amended the frequency of its cobalt hydroxide index, min 30% Co, cif China to weekly. The cobalt hydroxide index, min 30% Co, cif China was published on the last working day of the month until the end of July, and has been published fortnightly since August 7. Fastmarkets has seen a sustained increase in spot activity for fixed-price, prompt cobalt hydr...Read More
Spot Chinese cobalt salts prices, including those for cobalt tetroxide and sulfate, softened this week against a backdrop of weakening demand for lithium cobalt oxide (LCO) batteries for the rest of the year.Fastmarkets assessed the price for cobalt tetroxide 72.6% Co min, delivered China at 210,000-220,000 yuan ($30,730-32,194) per tonne on Wednesday September 2, down by 5,000-10,000 yuan per ton...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
China's domestic stainless steel prices have risen for a tenth week amid a strengthening nickel market and good downstream demand.The three-month nickel contract on the London Metal Exchange ended Wednesday September 2's official trading session at $15,671 per tonne, up by $594 per tonne (3.9%) from $15,077 per tonne a week earlier.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for nickel pig iron, high-gra...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...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were lower this morning. S&P 500 futures were down 4 points in pre-opening trade.Index futures recovered slightly following release of the U.S. August Employment Report at 8:30 AM EDT. Consensus for August Non-farm Payrolls was 1.400 million versus revised 1.743 million in July. Actual was 1.371 million. Consensus for August Unemployment Rate was 9.8% versus 10.2% in...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday September 2 that are worth another look.The premium for direct-reduced (DR) iron ore pellet for the third quarter of 2020 fell by 12.9% due to lower demand in the period, and market participants said the premium could fall...Read More
The three-month price of aluminium on the London Metal Exchange failed to breach nearby resistance at the close of trading on Wednesday September 2, despite reaching its highest price since January in the afternoon session, while a sharp decline in lead futures saw the metal lose 1.8% of its underlying price.Aluminium's outright price on the LME closed at $1,786 per tonne, a decline of more than 1...Read More