The collapse of the iron ore market and market turbulence over Chinese property developer Evergrande Group are adding to the economic woes caused by the Delta variant of Covid-19 for much of this year.It is hard to find bright sparks in the months ahead for the ferrous supply chain, which has been buffeted repeatedly in a short span of few months, starting with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang's comment...Read More
If any member was going to leave the London Metal Exchange ring trading floor, the exchange was probably hoping it wouldn't be Triland Metals Ltd.The company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Japanese conglomerate Mitsubishi, is one of the exchange's longest serving Category 1 members, having joined in 1972 after being founded in the prior year. Having a unit of Japan's largest trading company as a ri...Read More
Eight of the nine Category 1 members of the London Metal Exchange have indicated their support for continuing to trade official lunchtime prices in the open-outcry ring.Does this mean that one company does not support ring trading? And could one of the exchange's members be preparing to leave the trading floor?The exchange revealed on Monday August 9 that it had majority support for the ring, in a...Read More
Zinc and tin had the strongest growth on the afternoon of September 5 while nickel closed above $18,000 per tonne for the first time since last Thursday; copper was the only metal to end lower on the day. Tin's London Metal Exchange three-month price had the biggest rise on Tuesday, with a closing price of $35,079 per tonne, up by 1.8% from $34,450 per tonne on Monday. Just over one week ago, on S...Read More
Iron ore prices were largely flat on Tuesday October 5 with ongoing low liquidity in both the physical and futures market during the Chinese holiday, sources said.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $116.58 per tonne, down $0.54 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $119.34 per tonne, down $0.41 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $90.20 per tonne, d...Read More
Seaborne coking coal prices in the fob market on Tuesday October 5 continued to inch up amid limited supply in the market, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $603.28 per tonne, unchangedHard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $565.14 per tonne, unchangedPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $395.98 per tonne, up by $1.80 per tonneHard...Read More
European steel companies must scale up their decarbonization technologies within the coming decade or risk exhausting their allocated emissions allowances early, according to a report released on Tuesday September 14.The report, "Steeling for Net Zero," by climate researcher Industry Tracker, found that selected European steel companies have less than 26% of their carbon budget remaining and must...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.This month's key North American steel forecast highlights:US prices for hot-rolled coil moved in line with our forecasts in August, averaging $1,910 per ton, within 1% accuracy of our forecast of $1,925 per ton. The market has achieved much-needed stability in recent weeks, with prices fluctuating in the range of $1,900-1,94...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts is ready to view.As we approach the end of the first half of 2021, steel markets in Europe and the United States continue to heat up. This six-month period is largely unprecedented, with both steel prices and steelmakers' margins hitting a number of new record highs throughout.The rally is likely nearing its end, however, with global steel ou...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.This month's key North American steel forecast highlights:?EUR? US sheet prices hit record highs again in May, with upward momentum persisting into June. Actual US hot-rolled coil prices averaged $1,553 per ton in May, largely in line with our forecast of $1,540 per ton. Prices remain supported by strong underlying sup...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.This month's key ferro-alloy forecast highlights:Bulk and noble alloys both moved largely in line with our price forecasts globally over the past month, though several markets surprised to the upside, exceeding our forecast gains. Stronger-than-forecast pricing momentum was primarily triggered by supply shortages in numerous...Read More
The latest forecasts and analysis of the ferrous scrap and iron metallics market from the Fastmarkets research team are ready to be viewed.Stifled automotive output this year, driven by a supply shortage of semiconductor chips used in vehicles, has tightened prime scrap availability and widened the spreads between this grade of steelmaking raw material and obsolete scrap.While wide prime-over-obso...Read More
Stainless steel prices continue to register new highs around the end of the first half of 2021 and steelmakers continue to enjoy outsized margins.They have responded in recent months by increasing their output, which has now pushed above pre-pandemic levels and will eventually restore balance to the market.For now, though, supply gaps are still being filled and buyers find themselves competing aga...Read More
The mining industry needs collaboration, not competition, if it wants to advance net-zero carbon emissions targets for the sector, a panel of executives said. This means acting immediately now that a growing number of targets have been set, including a commitment on Tuesday October 5 by one-third of the world's mining and metals industry to a goal of net-zero Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emi...Read More
The latest data for the global manganese ore market for the week toOctober 3 2021.Read More
Rio Tinto has reached a new collective labor agreement with the union representing workers at its Kitimat aluminium smelter in British Columbia, Canada, following a vote by the union's members, the company said on Monday October 4.Rio Tinto and Unifor Local 2301 also reached an agreement on a memorandum of understanding "for a new way of working together and on a return-to-work protocol." "Ou...Read More
Zinc and tin had the strongest growth on the afternoon of September 5 while nickel closed above $18,000 per tonne for the first time since last Thursday; copper was the only metal to end lower on the day. Tin's London Metal Exchange three-month price had the biggest rise on Tuesday, with a closing price of $35,079 per tonne, up by 1.8% from $34,450 per tonne on Monday. Just over one week ago, on S...Read More
The heads of companies representing one-third of the world's mining and metals industry have signed a letter committing to a goal of net-zero Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050 or sooner, in line with the ambitions of the Paris Agreement.Twenty-eight companies, including Anglo American, BHP, Glencore, Rio Tinto and Vale, made a collective commitment as members of the Internationa...Read More
BHP will supply nickel sulfate to a battery making joint venture between Toyota Motor Corp and Panasonic Corp in a move designed to lower carbon emissions in the Japanese battery supply chain. The company said its Nickel West plant in Western Australia will supply the nickel sulfate to Prime Planet Energy & Solutions (PPES), one of Japan's leading lithium-ion battery producers. The batteries will...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States retreated for the third consecutive business day after market participants said buyers are comfortable with current inventory levels while some mills are expected to release more tonnage to contract and spot customers.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $97.39 per hundredweight ($1,947.80 per short ton) on Tuesda...Read More