Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday March 26 that are worth another look.China's electric-arc furnace mills have gradually raised production rates in the past three weeks following stronger demand for steel products.A major aluminium producer has concluded multiple deals with Japanese consumers for April-June delivery to main Japanese ports (MJP) at a premium on a c...Read More
Metals, mining and alloy producers have been scenario-planning in response to the novel coronavirus. The South African government appears to have just removed all but one option.President Cyril Ramaphosa ordered the country's mineral resources industry to shut underground mines and furnaces from Thursday March 26, unless they can be operated remotely. The shutdown will last for three weeks an...Read More
The 2019-nCoV pandemic is definitely a black swan event, one which nobody saw coming. Global business sentiment has taken a massive hit, with major industries grinding to a halt on travel bans, quarantine orders and border controls. Major airlines such as Singapore Airlines and Qatar Airways have grounded their fleets, stock markets have collapsed with exchanges closing and tourism is taking a pun...Read More
The London Metal Exchange has closed its open outcry trading floor and is using its electronic trading platform for price discovery as a precautionary measure amid the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) pandemic.The only other time the 143-year-old metals exchange temporarily closed was during World War II, when - in the absence of electronic trade - the venue was forced to shut entirely. The move to c...Read More
China's electric-arc furnace (EAF) mills have gradually raised their production rates in the past three weeks following stronger demand for steel products.But this higher output is unlikely to lower billet imports into the country, according to market sources. They expect this trade flow to persist as long as the arbitrage window stays open.Production rates for EAFs - which largely produce long st...Read More
The three-month price of lead on the London Metal Exchange was the standout performer at the close of trading on Thursday March 26, climbing by just over 3% to close at its highest level since March 16, while copper futures found support above the $4,800 per tonne threshold.Lead's underlying price on the LME closed at $1,685 per tonne, an increase of more than 3% from its intraday low of $1,635.50...Read More
The London Metal Exchange has developed procedures to manage the temporary unavailability of one of its approved warehouses or delivery points that might stem from the Covid-19 outbreak.These measures, which are in line with the exchange's Warehouse Agreement, address potential issues around delivery obligations, warranting and rent payments, it said. "These procedures have been discussed wit...Read More
The seaborne iron ore market cooled down on Thursday March 26 after gaining ground for two consecutive days, with the lower prices in line with a softer futures curve for rebar. Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $86.77 per tonne, down $0.57 per tonne 62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $87.64 per tonne, down $1.18 per tone58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao:&...Read More
The new issue of Aluminium Market Tracker is now online at metalbulletinresearch.com.In this edition, Fastmarkets' research team delivers key insights and forecasts into aluminium markets around the world.Aluminium price down 2.3% week-on-week amid stock market sell-offGlobal markets remain rattled by the spread of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCOV) across Europe and the United States. Panic-sellin...Read More
Copper has attempted to rebound since early September following a marked sell-off in the summer months where macro and fundamental forces have been prevalent.On the macro front, copper has benefited from a slight easing in US-China trade tensions and more monetary policy easing across the globe - including China, where copper consumption is the most exposed - that has shored up investor sentiment....Read More
The new issue of the Seamless OCTG & Linepipe Market Tracker is now online at metalbulletinresearch.com.In this edition, Fastmarkets' research team delivers analysis of seamless OCTG and linepipe across international markets:Covid-19 underscores pipe outlookUnsurprisingly, the concern in the seamless pipe markets across the regions is the effect of the spread of Covid-19 on public health and econo...Read More
The new issue of the Steel Market Tracker is now online at metalbulletinresearch.com.In this edition, Fastmarkets' research team delivers key insights and forecasts into the long and flat products markets.This week's risks to our latest flat-rolled forecasts:The Chinese government is stepping up help to the economy, increasing banks' liquidity. But the spread of the coronavirus worldwide is likely...Read More
The increasing consumption of scrap and a potential shift toward the electric-arc furnace (EAF) steelmaking route from the basic oxygen furnace (BOF) route in China are medium- to long-term threats to demand for steelmaking raw materials, while in the near team coking coal import volumes will continue to be affected by iron ore procurement strategies.This was the basis of Fastmarkets research team...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil have been largely unchanged in Europe due to the limited trading activity resulting from the lockdown measures put in place to combat the Covid-19 virus, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday March 26.Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil have been largely unchanged in Europe due to the limited trading activity resulting from the measures put in place to comba...Read More
The three-month price of lead on the London Metal Exchange was the standout performer at the close of trading on Thursday March 26, climbing by just over 3% to close at its highest level since March 16, while copper futures found support above the $4,800 per tonne threshold.Lead's underlying price on the LME closed at $1,685 per tonne, an increase of more than 3% from its intraday low of $1,635.50...Read More
AMAG Austria Metall AG is seeking permission from the Austrian government to place staff at its Ranshofen plant on short-time working from Wednesday April 1 while the Covid-19 pandemic reduces demand.AMAG, which supplies aluminium cast and flat rolled products to a variety of industries from Ranshofen, said that it has particularly seen a downturn in orders from the automotive industry."Plant clos...Read More
Sumitomo will temporarily stop operations at its Minera San Cristobal zinc-lead mine in Bolivia due to national restrictions imposed to contain the spread of the Covid-19 virus.On Thursday March 26, Sumitomo published a statement online, which said that it had decided to suspend operations due to all-day or night curfews being imposed in...Read More
A summary of the full-year financial performance of Brazilian aluminium producer Companhia Brasileira de Alum?-nio (CBA) in 2019, as reported by parent company Votorantim on Thursday March 26.In brief Brazilian demand for both upstream and downstream aluminium products fell in 2019, putting sales volumes under pressure.Lower aluminium prices and local premiums, alongside declining demand for the.....Read More
Glencore is placing its Raglan nickel, Matagami zinc and South African ferro-alloys operations on care and maintenance in response to Covid-19, the company said. Raglan and Matagami are both in Qu?(C)bec, Canada, where the government has ordered all non-essential businesses to close. The operations will be shut for three weeks. Located at the extreme limit of Northern Qu?(C)bec, the Raglan mi...Read More
A major aluminium producer has concluded multiple deals with Japanese consumers for April-June delivery to main Japanese ports (MJP) at a premium on a cif basis of $82 per tonne over the London Metal Exchange cash price, sources confirmed to Fastmarkets on Thursday March 26. This is the first deal between a producer and end consumers to be confirmed for the second quarter, according to market sour...Read More