The import price for steel slab in Southeast Asia and East Asia experienced an upswing over the past week due to lower slab supply and a rebound in regional hot-rolled coil prices. Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel slab imports, cfr Southeast Asia and East Asia was $350-360 per tonne on Monday April 20, up by $15-20 per tonne from $330-345 per tonne a week earlier. Over the past week, 3...Read More
Turkish domestic auto-bundle scrap prices increased over the past week due to rising imported ferrous scrap costs, sources said on Monday April 20.Deep-sea scrap import prices increased by more then $15 per tonne at the beginning of last week because of the limited supply coming from Europe and the United States, sources said.Following the upturn in the deep-sea scrap values, auto bundle scrap...Read More
The Indian Steel Association (ISA) has revised downward India's steel demand growth forecast for 2020 as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic in the country and the subsequent lockdown. The association, which represents some of the country's biggest steel companies, said predictions of steel demand growth of 5.1% this year - made in February - have now been revised down to -7.7%. The main downstream...Read More
Prices for pig iron exports from the south of Brazil rebounded during the week ended Friday April 17 on continued demand in China and lower freight rates.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for pig iron, export, fob port of Vitoria/Rio, Brazil was $270-280 per tonne on Friday, up from $265 per tonne a week before.Once the previous assessment was published on Thursday April 9, a sal...Read More
Ferrous scrap prices in the global markets continued to increase during the working week ended Friday April 17, amid limited supply in Europe and the United States and the higher demand from mills in Turkey, but prices might be at their peak.Mills in Turkey accelerated deep-sea bookings with prices stabilizingDemand in Turkey raised US pricesBuyers in Vietnam unwilling to pay higher pricesSellers...Read More
The market for seaborne iron ore fines continued to strengthen on Monday April 20, with Brazilian producer Vale cutting its production guidance figure for 2020 to 310-330 million tonnes.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $87.45 per tonne, up by $1.28 per tonne.62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $89.11 per tonne, up by $1.21 per tonne.58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qin...Read More
Seaborne prices remained under pressure on Monday April 20 due to a pessimistic sentiment over the imbalance between supply and demand, sources said.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $128.26 per tonne, down $2.34 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $136.51 per tonne, up $0.76 per tonneHard coking coal, fob DBCT: $117.01 per tonne, down $2 per tonneHard coking coal...Read More
The base metals on the London Metal Exchange and on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mainly firmer this morning, Monday April 20, but broader markets were mixed with equities braced for the release of corporate earnings. With some countries and regions looking to lift restrictions, while others are extending restrictions and with uncertainty about whether reopening will lead to second waves of t...Read More
Key data from the pricing sessions in Europe, the United States and Asia for the week ended Friday April 17.United States Silicon prices hold week on week in the US, with a standoff reportedly in effect between sellers and buyers. Producers are not lowering their quotes because they do not trust any business to materialize. Ongoing automaker shutdowns during...Read More
The Chinese magnesium market was supported by output cuts and the suspension of operations at small plants in the week ended Friday April 17, but muted demand has limited supply-driven price increases in the international market.Fastmarkets assessed the price of magnesium 99%, exw China, at 13,000-13,100 yuan ($1,836-1,850) per tonne on Friday, up from 12,900-13,100 yuan per tonne a week earlier.T...Read More
A summary of Brazilian miner Vale's base metals production results for the first quarter of 2020, as stated in its production report on Friday April 17.In brief Nickel output declined during the first three months of the year after operations at Canadian unit Voisey's Bay were halted due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and amid other planned outages during the three-month period. Nickel production incre...Read More
Chinese domestic portside manganese ore prices of both high and low grades registered significant increases in the latest assessments on Friday April 17, after the country's ore traders raised offer prices notably in response to a 14-day extension of the lockdown in South Africa. On April 9, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced he would extend the nationwide lockdown in place sin...Read More
Singapore's rebar market has come to a complete standstill due to a suspension of all construction activity in the island nation apart from that for key infrastructure projects as a measure to contain the spread of the Covid-19 virus.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar) import, cfr Singapore, which mainly looks at cargoes sold into Singapore on a theoretical-weigh...Read More
Steel billet prices in most major regions around the world climbed in the week to Friday April 17, tracking gains seen in the bellwether Turkish ferrous scrap import market. Scrap prices in the world's largest importer of the steelmaking raw material have increased by close to $50 per tonne since plunging to April 2's three-and-a-half-year low of $208.10 per tonne. CIS, Turkey, EgyptTrading activi...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange and Shanghai Futures Exchange were weaker this morning, Tuesday April 21, and Asian-Pacific and pre-market major western equity indices were weaker too. On Monday we had thought poor corporate earnings data had the potential to rattle markets, but it seems that negative oil futures prices were the catalyst that caused traders concern. The soon-to-exp...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were lower this morning. S&P 500 futures were down 44 points in pre-opening trade.Travellers dropped $1.83 to $99.95 after the company reported lower than consensus first quarter revenues and earnings.Disney fell $1.36 to $100.90 after Citigroup lowered its target price from $161 to $135.IBM dropped $3.56 to $116.85 after reporting lower than consensus first quarter r...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Friday April 17 that are worth another look.Prices paid for Brazil-origin steel slab in export deals have narrowed in the week ended April 17, with recovering demand in Asia and Europe resulting in increased numbers of deals, sources said.The Covid-19 pandemic is a unifier in that it impacts all. But sub-Saharan Africa is facing an unprece...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Friday April 17 that are worth another look.Prices paid for Brazil-origin steel slab in export deals have narrowed in the week ended April 17, with recovering demand in Asia and Europe resulting in increased numbers of deals, sources said.The Covid-19 pandemic is a unifier in that it impacts all. But sub-Saharan Africa is facing an unprece...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Friday April 17 that are worth another look.Prices paid for Brazil-origin steel slab in export deals have narrowed in the week ended April 17, with recovering demand in Asia and Europe resulting in increased numbers of deals, sources said.The Covid-19 pandemic is a unifier in that it impacts all. But sub-Saharan Africa is facing an unprece...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Friday April 17 that are worth another look.Prices paid for Brazil-origin steel slab in export deals have narrowed in the week ended April 17, with recovering demand in Asia and Europe resulting in increased numbers of deals, sources said.The Covid-19 pandemic is a unifier in that it impacts all. But sub-Saharan Africa is facing an unprece...Read More