Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were down across the board at the 5pm close of trading on Tuesday October 26.The three-month aluminium price lost more ground, closing 1.6% lower, at $2,829 per tonne.Aluminium was the most-traded metal on LMESelect throughout the day, with 23,151 lots traded by 5:30pm, compared with just 9,243 lots of copper."In line with our expectations, discussed...Read More
Glencore's Portovesme zinc and lead producing site in Italy is considering government-backed social protection programs among many recourses to deal with the high price of electricity, Fastmarkets has heard. As of mid-October, the company has been "monitoring the situation across its European zinc smelters, and adjusting production to reduce exposure to peak price periods during the day, whil...Read More
Decarbonization is too big a challenge for one single industry to tackle alone and will inevitably lead to collaborative efforts with other sectors, the deputy secretary general of the International Aluminium Institute has said.Speaking during a briefing on Tuesday October 26, Pernelle Nunez said that the aluminium industry - which is responsible for 2% of global carbon emissions due mostly to the...Read More
Rio Tinto and Iceland-based carbon-capture company Carbfix will partner to implement a carbon-capturing storage facility at Rio Tinto's ISAL Aluminium plant in Iceland, according to a statement published on Tuesday October 26.Carbfix will use Rio Tinto land around the ISAL smelter for an onshore carbon mineral storage facility, which will store carbon emissions from the smelter as well as other so...Read More
Miner Sibanye-Stillwater has acquired Brazilian companies Atlantic Nickel and Minera????o Vale Verde (MVV) from Appian Capital Advisory LLP for $1 billion and an additional royalty, the companies have said.The deal will give Sibanye-Stillwater 100% ownership of both the Santa Rita nickel mine operated by Atlantic Copper, and the Serrote copper mine operated by MVV.Appian will receive $1 billion in...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States rebounded on Tuesday October 26, with buyers still finding mills unwilling to budge on higher price levels despite reports of softness.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $95.43 per hundredweight ($1,908.60 per ton) on Tuesday October 26, up by 2.12% from $93.45 per cwt on Monday October 25 but down by 0.50% from...Read More
Sales volumes from Brazilian flat-rolled steel distributors decreased by 27.69% in September, compared with the corresponding month last year, national distributor association Inda said on Tuesday October 26.There was a much stronger base of comparison this year compared with 2020, when the market was rapidly recovering from lows caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.Sales totaled 291,500 tonnes in Sept...Read More
Flat steel import prices into the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia decreased or were unchanged during the week ended Tuesday October 26, with only one deal heard, sources told Fastmarkets.Offer prices decreased from India during the week, and Saudi Arabia also offered hot-rolled coil at reduced prices to the UAE."Everyone is in wait-and-see mode," one trader said. "With the Chinese futures ma...Read More
Uncertainty about steel product prices in the United Arab Emirates continued even after the country's biggest producer, Emirates Steel, announced a new rebar price on October 24, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday October 26.Emirates Steel has been offering rebar at 2,490 dirhams ($678) per tonne ex-works since October 24, rising from the previous 2,406 dirhams per tonne ex-works.But the price in...Read More
A summary of the operational results for Russia's largest steelmaker, Novolipetsk Steel (NLMK), which also has assets in Europe and the United States, for the third quarter (July-September) of 2021In brief?EUR? In the third quarter, NLMK's consolidated sales decreased by 4% compared with the second quarter, to 4.1 million tonnes amid steel output reductions at its Russian flat steel division.?EUR?...Read More
Sentiment in China's import market for steel billet warmed on Tuesday October 26 following a more solid performance by ferrous futures markets and reports of better power supply in the east of the country.Physical rebar and billet prices remained flat in key Chinese local markets on Tuesday, while the most-traded January rebar futures contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) closed at 4,91...Read More
Turkish steel producers have continued their deep-sea scrap purchases ahead of an upcoming national holiday, market participants told Fastmarkets on Tuesday October 26.A steel mill in the Marmara region booked a US-origin cargo comprising 20,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (90:10) and 10,000 tonnes of shredded at an average price of $513 per tonne cfr.This compared with the most recent deep-sea cargoes book...Read More
Buyers in Taiwan continued to bid at higher prices for containerized steel scrap cargoes on Tuesday October 26, but there were expectations on the sell-side that the market would stabilize this week, sources told Fastmarkets.?EUR?Taiwanese buyers bid higher for containerized cargoes?EUR?South Korean mills raise bid prices for higher-grade materials?EUR?Major Chinese steelmakers reduce domestic scr...Read More
China imported 20,519 tonnes of ferrous scrap in September, a 49.39% drop compared with August's 40,540 tonnes, according to the latest Chinese customs data.Of the total, 11,750 tonnes, or 57.27%, originated in Japan.South Korea remained China's second-largest scrap supplier in September, accounting for 2,170 tonnes (10.58%) of imports.Canada with 1,621 tonnes, or 7.90% of the total, and Taiwan wi...Read More
Seaborne premium coking coal prices inched downward on Tuesday October 26 with no trading in the market. Meanwhile, Chinese mills were still to accept the domestic coke price increase proposed on Monday.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $614.37 per tonne, down by $0.77 per tonneHard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $568.59 per tonne, unchangedPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT:...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices rose on Tuesday October 26 amid some short-term positivity in demand for iron ore, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $122.30 per tonne, up $3.22 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $124.11 per tonne, up $3.63 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $94.41 per tonne, up $3.44 per tonne65% Fe Brazil-ori...Read More
Spot prices for hot-rolled coil in China fell on Tuesday October 26 amid weakening demand and a weakening of the futures market on Monday night.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 5,500-5,550 yuan ($862-870) per tonne, down by 50 yuan per tonneThe most-traded HRC contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell sharply on Monday night, plunging to a four-month trough of 5,135 yuan per tonne during the...Read More
London Metal Exchange prices were mostly lower on the morning of Tuesday October 26, with copper leading the decline with a 1.2% fall and nickel being the exception. Most nearby spreads remained in backwardation, indicating tightness in various markets.Copper's three-month price was at $9,750 per tonne at 9am, down from Monday's 5pm price of $9,867.50 per tonne. Following the LME's newly imposed r...Read More
Rebar demand in China's domestic market strengthened on Tuesday October 26 amid good weather, though prices were unchanged with sellers coming under destocking pressure.Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 5,350-5,400 yuan ($838-846) per tonne, unchangedRebar consumption rates among end users strengthened during the day with most parts of China experiencing mild weather conditions. This improved dem...Read More
Silicon prices in the United States continued to rise, chasing earlier increases in other regions. The US price hit an all-time high for the fifth week in a row, although prices in Europe and China were flat to down in the week to Friday October 22.The US price moved sharply during the assessment week, with range widening to a $1.25-per-lb spread and a high end hit $5 per lb for a commodity that w...Read More