Alumina exports from Brazil increased in June on an annual basis but at a reduced rate than in the previous months of this year, data from the country's economy ministry on Monday July 6 showed. Brazilian alumina exports totaled 679,914 tonnes in June, a 4.6% year-on-year increase from 650,229 tonnes. When compared with May figures, however, exports fell by 12.8% from 779,694 tonnes. The lower exp...Read More
A regulatory filing has shown that Dongying Fangyuan missed the payment of a bond that reached its maturity eight months ago.The biggest private copper smelter in China said on July 6 that it is still in the process of repaying the principal payment and the interest for its bond named '16 Fangyuan 01', which is numbered 136807, according to its filing to the Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE). The bond...Read More
First Quantum Minerals is to resume production at its Cobre Panama copper project after Panama's government lifted its Covid-19 suspension of operations at the site. The Panama copper project is expected to reach full capacity by mid-August, the Toronto, Canada-listed company said. A phased increase in personnel is expected to take output to an annualized throughput rate of 85...Read More
Australia-based tin mining company Kasbah Resources has delisted from the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), according to a company statement issued on Tuesday June 30.The delisting came after 13 years of activity on the exchange, with the company citing a large disparity between project valuation and market capitalization as a determining factor behind the decision."It is the board's view that...Read More
Prices for steel rebar and billet in the United Arab Emirates were stable this week due to only limited demand, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday July 7.Domestic rebarUAE local mills were offering rebar at 1,770-1,774 dirhams ($482-483) per tonne ex-works, unchanged since late June.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, exw UAE, was 1,770-1,773 dir...Read More
Hot-rolled coil import prices in the United Arab Emirates inched upward this week while hot-dipped galvanized coil prices narrowed downward, but demand was moderate, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday July 7.Market participants wanted to wait to see whether prices would fall because of the weak demand.UAEOffer prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) from China were heard in the UAE at $470 per tonne cfr...Read More
Domestic transaction prices for hot-rolled coil in Northern Europe moved up slightly day on day on Tuesday July 7, with steelmakers insisting on further price rises, sources have told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe, was calculated at ?,?403.13 ($455.49) per tonne on Tuesday, up by ?,?0.81 per tonne day on day from ?,?402.32 per tonne on Ju...Read More
China's domestic hot-rolled coil prices rose on Tuesday July 7 amid moderate trading activity, while the export market remained quiet despite higher bids emerging in Pakistan, sources told Fastmarkets.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,780-3,790 yuan ($538-539) per tonne, up 30-40 yuan per tonneSellers in Shanghai raised their offers amid rising futures. Sentiment had picked up in response to loc...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices moved up on Tuesday July 7 on gains in the futures and billet markets fueled by concerns over how strict local authorities are in implementing production restrictions in the country's steelmaking hub of Tangshan.Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,530-3,560 yuan ($503-507) per tonne, up by 10-30 yuan per tonneMarket sources told Fastmarkets that local authorities in...Read More
Crude steel production rates among member mills of the China Iron & Steel Association (Cisa) stopped rising in late June, having risen steadily over the three months, according to data released last weekend.Their daily crude steel output had been increasing since early April.June 21-30 outputCrude steel: 2.14 million tonnes per day, unchangedRead More
Prices for ferrous scrap in Mexico went down during the week ended Friday July 3 amid low demand and expectations of softer prices in the United States.Prices for six of the 10 Mexican ferrous scrap grades assessed by Fastmarkets decreased on Tuesday July 7, with prices for the remaining four grades unchanged.Fastmarkets' assessment of the steel scrap No1 busheling, consumer buying price, delivere...Read More
Turkish steel producers continued to hold back from the deep-sea scrap markets on the second working day of the week because of the soft markets for finished long steel products, sources said on Tuesday July 7.Steel mills in Turkey booked five deep-sea cargoes in the second half of last week, totalling around 140,000 tonnes.But they were still expected to book more cargoes for August shipments, ac...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices stayed bullish on Tuesday July 7, largely following the upward trend observed in the futures market, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $103.01 per tonne, up $1.77 per tonne.62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $105.31 per tonne, up $1.32 per tonne.58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $91.84 per tonne, up $2.03 per t...Read More
Seaborne coking coal prices remained relatively flat on Tuesday July 7 due to a lack of drivers for the market, sources said.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $113.86 per tonne, down $0.17 per tonne Premium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $125.26 per tonne, down $0.16 per tonneHard coking coal, fob DBCT: $93.33 per tonne, unchangedHard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $104.67 per to...Read More
Three-month base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange consolidated lower in the morning of Tuesday July 7, following low-volume trading over the Asia hours, while copper's forward spreads eased despite net outflows. Copper's outright price on the LME was recently at $6,093.50 per tonne on Tuesday morning, falling from a morning high of $6,172.50 per tonne, while turnover was low at just over...Read More
Global manganese ore production increased by 23% in May month on month from April amid the removal of output restrictions worldwide, the latest data from the International Manganese Institute (IMnI) shows.Global supply hit 1.5 million tonnes in May, up by 23% from April and with manganese ore output from all producing countries increasing month on month.The biggest regional output increase came fr...Read More
Protests on Tuesday July 7 have halted road freight transportation in South Africa. Miners' trucks have been toppled and drivers threatened while demonstrators have sought to enforce their shutdown of the nation's road freight system. The target of the demonstrations is all road freight and is not focussed on the...Read More
With the exception of China's CSI 300, Asian-Pacific equities and pre-market major western equity futures were weaker this morning, Tuesday July 7, while base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mixed, although in general were holding up well. China's equity markets are experiencing a retail investor rally that is being encouraged by state media - the market is up by almost 14% over th...Read More
China has issued its ninth round of scrap metal import quotas for 2020, approving considerably larger volumes than in previous rounds at a time of persisting uncertainty surrounding the country's move to rename certain non-ferrous scrap metal as renewable materials.A total of 176,746 tonnes of copper scrap has been approved for import into China in the ninth round of quotas, the China Solid Waste...Read More
With the exception of China’s CSI 300, Asian-Pacific equities and pre-market major western equity futures were weaker this morning, Wednesday July 8, while base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were little changed and those on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were generally firmer.We wait to see if the halt in the rise in equities is just a pause, or whether focus is turning to the rap...Read More