Seaborne iron ore prices fell on Thursday June 18 after Vale announced the gradual resumption of operations at its Itabira complex in southern Brazil. Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $102.40 per tonne, down $1.69 per tonne. 62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $105.17 per tonne, down $1.26 per tonne. 58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $92.78 per...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.Iron ore prices climbed further last week and we expect the elevated levels to remain into the next month. In particular, further upside will come from blast furnace (BF) capacity, which was reduced in Europe, Japan and the United States and has now come back online after restrictions started to be removed. With Covid-19 spr...Read More
Export prices for steel scrap from Japan remained largely unchanged in the week to Wednesday June 17, but market participants expecting to see lower prices in the next bookings.Japan's export scrap prices for H2 heavy scrap have been on a consistent upward trend since early April, but the high prices have put off many buyers over the past week, with key consumers in Taiwan concentrating...Read More
Seaborne premium hard coking coal prices were pushed up slightly on Thursday June 18 by recent transactions of premium mid-volatility hard coking coal sealed at higher levels. Fastmarkets indices Premium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $109.22 per tonne, up $1.04 per tonne Premium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $118.19 per tonne, up $0.85 per tonne Hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $89.41 per tonne, unchan...Read More
China's domestic hot-rolled coil prices gained upward momentum on Thursday June 18 after the Chinese government announced financial support for small companies.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,690-3,700 yuan ($521-522) per tonne, up by 40 yuan per tonneThe State Council signaled on Wednesday that it would lower the amount of reserves that banks are required hold to spur lending. The Chinese gov...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices edged up on Thursday June 18 amid rising futures following news about the Chinese government's plan to ease its monetary policy.Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,560-3,590 yuan ($502-506) per tonne, up by 10 yuan per tonneThe Chinese government intends to ease its monetary policy in the second half of this year to stimulate the country's economy, Premier Li Keqiang...Read More
Strong demand for seaborne iron ore and uncertainties over Brazilian supply of the steelmaking raw material continue to prop up spot prices despite Vale's resumption of operations at its Itabira mining complex."Even though the Itabira complex is good to resume, market participants still don't expect Vale to hit its target of 310 million tonnes this year, and low iron ore inventories at Chinese por...Read More
The cobalt alloy grade, in-whs Rotterdam 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...Read More
The cobalt standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam 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 standard grade, in-whs...Read More
Key data from the Wednesday June 17 pricing session in London. Key drivers Increased spot inquiry fails to continue into this week, with market participants indicating a short round of pre-summer restocking, that has now been concluded. Sources say strong...Read More
News that carmaker Tesla secured a cobalt supply deal with Glencore has failed to lend any support to blue metal prices in China so far this week, with market participants instead focusing on persistently weak downstream demand.Tesla will purchase cobalt from trader-miner Glencore to feed its new "Gigafactories" in Shanghai and Berlin, several media outlets reported on Tuesday June 16.The news imm...Read More
Brazilian sellers have ramped up containerized exports of steel scrap into South Asian markets over the past year but this explosion in export sales is unlikely to be a long-term trend, sources have told Fastmarkets. Scrap collectors and processors in the country have traditionally sold the vast majority of their stocks in the domestic market, with only the excess being exported. But waning Brazil...Read More
Markets were mixed again this morning, Friday June 19, while participants wait to see if second waves of Covid-19 are going to derail the V-shaped recovery in asset markets.Needless to say the V-shaped recoveries in prices seem to be ignoring the current depressed state of demand and the forecasts for 2020. * Asian-Pacific equity markets were mainly firmer this morning, while pre-market major west...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 34 points in pre-opening trade. The Canadian Dollar was virtually unchanged at US 73.68 cents following release of Canadian April Retail Sales at 8:30 AM EDT. Consensus was a drop of 15.1% versus a drop of 10.1% in March. Actual was a drop of 26.4%. Excluding auto sales, consensus was a drop of 13.5% versus a decline o...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday June 17 that are worth another look.The European Commission (EC) has outlined plans to regulate access of foreign investors in the single market of the European Union, the commission said on its website on June 17.European Aluminium has called on the European Commission (EC) to address the distorting effects of foreign subsidies...Read More
The three-month nickel price was the worst-performing LME base metal at the close of trading on Wednesday June 17, with a 1.3% downturn, while a steady climb in zinc futures saw it overcome nearby resistance. Nickel's outright price on the London Metal Exchange closed at $12,871 per tonne on Wednesday afternoon, with selling pressure seeing it fall from an intraday high of $13,045 per tonne,...Read More
A summary of London Metal Exchange warrant premiums from across the globe for the week to Wednesday June 17.Please click...Read More
At 5,500 meters above sea level, a team of four from a major Chinese zinc smelter was driving up a snowy mountain in the summer of 2018, on their way to the country's largest known zinc-lead deposit - the Huoshaoyun deposit southwest of Hotan County in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.But the field trip came to an abrupt end when the team was just two hours away from the site. "We...Read More
Turkish steel producers continued to book deep-sea scrap for July shipment at steady prices on Wednesday June 17, sources told Fastmarkets.A steel mill in the Iskenderun region booked a US cargo, comprising 17,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $267 per tonne cfr and 15,000 tonnes of shredded at $272 per tonne cfr.Following the news of the US transaction, the change in the daily scrap indices was on...Read More
Markets were mixed this morning, Wednesday June 17, while bullish sentiment continues to be fueled by government liquidity and stimulus but Covid-19 concerns and economic reality remain headwinds.Asian-Pacific equity markets were mixed this morning, but pre-market major western equity index futures were weaker. Passenger car registrations in the European Union fall by 52.3% year on year in May, Ap...Read More