Prices for cold-rolled coil and galvanized sheet in the United States have slipped on deep discounting at some mills and lower substrate costs.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel cold-rolled coil, fob mill US slipped to $38.50 per hundredweight ($770 per short ton) on Thursday February 6. That price is down by 0.6% (or $0.25 per cwt) from $38.75 per cwt the week prior and down by 2...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices went down again in the United States after buyers reported seeing more weakness in certain steel end-user sectors as a result of the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $29.64 per hundredweight ($592.80 per short ton) on Friday February 7, down by 0.2% from $29.71 per cwt the day before and down by 0.3...Read More
The Court of Milan in Italy has postponed until March 6 a hearing regarding the attempt by the country's government to stop steelmaker ArcelorMittal withdrawing from the deal to purchase the flat steel producer formerly known as Ilva, Italian trade union Fiom said on Friday February 7.The hearing was originally scheduled for February 7.The decision to postpone the hearing increased the uncertainty...Read More
Prices for imports of commercial-grade hot-rolled coil into India have dropped by $35 per tonne in the past week after Japan-origin coils were offered to Indian importers at $490-495 per tonne cfr Chennai port.Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel HRC, import, cfr main port India, on Friday January 7 was $490-495 per tonne, down from last week's assessment at $525-530 per tonne.But importers hav...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in Turkey fell in the week to Friday February 7, with demand still limited because buyers were waiting for some clear direction before placing orders.Scrap prices also continued to fall, with Fastmarkets' daily index for steel scrap, HMS 1&2 (80:20 mix), Northern Europe origin, cfr Turkey, was $252 per tonne on February 6, down from $263.54 per tonne on January 31.HRC export...Read More
The price of austenitic stainless steel scrap in the UK domestic market widened upwards on slightly firmer nickel costs, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday February 7. Fastmarkets' price assessment for stainless steel scrap 18/8 solids, domestic, delivered merchants UK, was ?750-790 ($972-1,024) per tonne on Friday, up...Read More
Turkish steel producers continued to book deep-sea scrap cargoes at the end of the week to replenish their low stock levels, sources said on Friday February 7.A steel mill in the Iskenderun region booked a US cargo at $260 per tonne cfr for HMS 1&2 (80:20), although the cargo breakdown was not clear at the time of publication.This compares with a previous US cargo sold at a similar price on Thursd...Read More
The price of ferrous scrap imported into India dropped further this week, although trading was more active, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday February 7.Fastmarkets' calculation of the steel scrap, shredded, index, import, cfr Nhava Sheva, India, was $284.44 per tonne on Friday, down from $291.99 per tonne one week before, marking the fourth consecutive week of price decreases.This week, deals ha...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices continued to be buoyed by cyclone-led port impacts in Western Australia on Friday February 7, while doubts remained among Chinese market participants about steelmaking demand. Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $83.59 per tonne, up $0.42 per tonne.62% Fe Pilbara Blend fines, cfr Qingdao: $82.92 per tonne, up $0.42 per tonne. 62% Fe low-alumina fines, cf...Read More
Trading activity in the seaborne coking coal market suggested that prices for the steelmaking raw material were still holding up despite bearish sentiment in China for steel demand due to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in Wuhan.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $151.58 per tonne, up by $0.93 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $160.61 per tonne,...Read More
Contract cancellations amid an ongoing outbreak of the novel coronavirus in China and beyond are making for a buyer's market for ferrous scrap in Asia. VietnamFastmarkets' weekly price assessment for bulk cargoes of steel scrap HMS 1&2 (80:20), cfr Vietnam was $267-269 per tonne cfr on Friday February 7, down by $11-16 per tonne from $278-285 per tonne cfr Vietnam a week earlier.Deep-sea bulk carg...Read More
Australia's Port of Dampier in Western Australia state is being shut down at noon local time on Friday February 7 in preparation for a potential impact from a tropical cyclone that is expected to intensify during the day.The Pilbara Ports Authority (PPA) said during the day that its cyclone response procedure has been activated and with it, the Port of Dampier will be shut down, having already bee...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices remained unchanged on Friday February 7 amid weak trading despite an expected rise in construction activity from next week.Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,360-3,400 yuan ($481-487) per tonne, unchangedNorthern China (Beijing): 3,540-3,560 yuan per tonne, unchangedMany construction projects in Shanghai are scheduled to resume work next week, though a few of them have put o...Read More
China's hot-rolled coil prices dropped further on Friday February 7 amid thin trading in the domestic market, which led at least one mill to export at prices much lower than the market average to draw down stock levels.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,540-3,550 yuan ($510-512) per tonne, down 30 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tangshan): 3,250-3,270 yuan per tonne, down 10-20 yuan per tonneMost s...Read More
The London Metal Exchange three-month zinc price was trading down 1.2% on the previous day's close at around $2,179.50 per tonne during the morning session on Friday February 7, following a 10,100-tonne fresh inflow of the metal into LME-approved sheds in Vlissingen in the Netherlands.This was versus a much lesser 375-tonne outflow of material from Rotterdam and Vlissingen, leaving LME global zinc...Read More
An overview of the Chinese minor metals markets and the reasons for their latest price moves. Read More
A summary of the financial results for Belgian battery-materials manufacturer Umicore in 2019.In brief The company grew revenues and recurring earnings before interest and taxes (Ebit) in catalysis despite the global recession in the automotive market, resulting from market share gains in light duty gasoline applications and increasing penetration of gasoline particulate filters in Europe and Chin...Read More
Moving into 2020, cobalt metal, salts and hydroxide prices have been well supported in January on solid demand and producers' firm offers, while spot activity in China has slowed since mid-January due to the Lunar New Year holiday and Wuhan coronavirus outbreak.Price movesTraders and consumers actively restocking boosted the benchmark standard-grade cobalt prices at the very beginning of January,...Read More
Key data from the pricing sessions in Europe, the United States and Asia for the week ending Friday February 7. China Coronavirus-related raw material supply disruptions and road transport restrictions pushed up domestic price. Tightened road transport measures made it hard to find trucks to deliver alloy from smelters to stainless steel mills, sources said. Trading activity in U...Read More
The price of stainless steel in the European domestic market remained unchanged this week, despite weak demand, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday February 7. Many market participants expect prices to fall in March because of recent weakness in the nickel market (despite nickel prices actually moving up slightly this week). But this expectation...Read More