Fastmarkets copper concentrate treatment charge/refining charge (TC/RC) edged down this week, with few inquiries for spot tonnages, sources said on Friday October 15.TCs for smelters remain in the low-to-mid $60s, a level still well below the Chinese pricing floor of $70 per tonne/7 cents per lb.As for trader purchases, a tender for Escondida concentrate...Read More
Less stringent restrictions on power supply in some areas of China have led to a boost in steel production levels and ferrous scrap demand at some mills in recent days, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday October 15.?EUR?Less strict power rationing helps support China scrap prices?EUR?Import prices in China inch up amid higher bids from buyers?EUR?South Korea buys high-grade Japanese scrap.ChinaThe...Read More
The entirety of copper's London Metal Exchange forward curve ended the day in a backwardated state on October 15, with fears of supply tightness taking over metals across the board. Zinc reached its highest prices in over a decade while tin climbed to new all-time highs. Copper's benchmark cash/three-month spread on LMESelect - the Exchange's electronic platform - touched a $350-per-tonne b...Read More
Domestic hot-rolled coil prices in China cruised higher on Friday October 15, with the futures market extending its gains on production curbs in the country showing no signs of easing.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 5,760-5,830 yuan ($896-907) per tonne, up by 20-40 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tangshan): weekly assessment: 5,720-5,780 yuan per tonne, down by 20-60 yuan per tonne The most-trade...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices fell on Friday October 15 amid lower traded volumes at Chinese ports, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $125.22 per tonne, down $0.69 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $126.50 per tonne, down $1.10 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $94.29 per tonne, down $0.64 per tonne65% Fe Brazil-origin fin...Read More
The entirety of copper's London Metal Exchange forward curve ended the day in a backwardated state on October 15, with fears of supply tightness taking over metals across the board. Zinc reached its highest prices in over a decade while tin climbed to new all-time highs. Copper's benchmark cash/three-month spread on LMESelect - the Exchange's electronic platform - touched a $350-per-tonne b...Read More
An overview of the specialty steel raw materials markets in Europe and their latest price moves.Janie Davies, Cristina Belda,...Read More
Market participants in the bauxite industry in China, both metallurgical and non-metallurgical grades, have downplayed the effect of heavy rainfall in Shanxi earlier this month despite a temporary closure of alumina operation lines. But sources expressed concerns over operations in the coming winter because of the traditional environmental regulations and energy shortages.Heavy downpours started i...Read More
Record-high coking coal prices have been pressuring steelmakers in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), mainly in Ukraine, because of a dependence on imports, sources told Fastmarkets.Global coking coal prices have been trending upward since October 2020, when the Chinese government imposed a ban on Australian materials.Fastmarkets' index for premium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang -...Read More
Higher demand in key consumer markets led to a jump in steel scrap prices across all major markets in the week to Friday October 15, sources have told Fastmarkets.?EUR?Turkey import prices spike amid limited supply, firm demand?EUR?Further price increases expected in US export market?EUR?High prices dissuade Vietnam buyers from more deals?EUR?China scrap demand recovers amid less stringent power r...Read More
The export pig iron market from the Commonwealth of Independent States improved in the week to Thursday October 14, with new sales to Italy and a bullish mood among suppliers.Fastmarkets' price assessment for high-manganese pig iron, export, fob main port Black Sea, CIS was $500-520 per tonne on Thursday, up by $10 from $490-510 per tonne the previous week.Several sales of Ukraine-origin pig iron...Read More
An overview of the new energy materials markets and their price moves in the week to Friday October 15.Susan Zou, Yingchi Yang and...Read More
The Cobalt sulfate 20.5% Co basis, exw China, yuan/tonne trade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparencyinto the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies.Fastmarkets...Read More
Coated steel coil prices increased sharply in Turkey during the week ended Friday October 15 and some producers stopped accepting new orders, sources told Fastmarkets.Producers stopped accepting orders because prices for hot-rolled coil, the base material for coated coils, continued to increase and producers wanted to reflect cost increases in their end-product prices.Fastmarkets' weekly price ass...Read More
A lack of trading across Europe kept domestic prices for hot-rolled coil fairly stable on Friday October 15, sources told Fastmarkets.Bearish sentiment is prevailing in the market, supported by poor demand from the automotive sector and good domestic supplies. Buyers and sellers have mainly been holding back from making deals, with only limited volumes traded in Europe during the week, sources sai...Read More
An oversupply of emissions trading credits in China by more than 1.5 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide will likely cap carbon prices in the country, TransitionZero carbon analyst Matt Gray told Fastmarkets in an interview.China kicked off an emissions trading scheme (ETS) on July 16, with the first phase of its carbon experiment centered on thermal coal-fired power plants. Other heavy industries su...Read More
The entirety of copper's London Metal Exchange forward curve ended the day in a backwardated state on October 15, with fears of supply tightness taking over metals across the board. Zinc reached its highest prices in over a decade while tin climbed to new all-time highs. Copper's benchmark cash/three-month spread on LMESelect - the Exchange's electronic platform - touched a $350-per-tonne b...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States dropped below $96 per hundredweight ($1,920 per short ton) for the first time since August, with rising inventories putting downward pressure on prices, according to market sources.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $95.47 per cwt ($1,909.40 per ton) on Friday October 15, down by 0.85% from $96.29 per cwt on Thu...Read More
The market for pig iron exports from the south of Brazil went up during the week to Friday October 15 because of new sales, Fastmarkets has heard.Fastmarkets' price assessment for pig iron, export, fob port of Vitoria/Rio, Brazil, was $500 per tonne on Friday, up from $480-485 per tonne a week earlier.Two sales were heard at...Read More
Inventory changes of base metals in Shanghai Futures Exchange warehouses were mixed during the week to Friday October 15, with zinc gaining the most in percentage terms at 16% and copper declining by 20.1%.Zinc inventories stood at 71,444 tonnes on Friday, an increase of 9,854 tonnes from 61,590 tonnes a week ago, according to the exchange's weekly report.The largest inflows came into warehouses o...Read More