China's steel refining and rerolling industry's capacity utilization rate was 80.2% in the fourth quarter of 2019, above the national industrial average of 77.5%, according to figures from the country's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) released on Friday January 17.The country's industrial capacity utilization rate of 77.5% was 1.5 percentage points higher than the corresponding period a year e...Read More
Chinese steel production increased in 2019 amid stronger demand from the construction sector, according to data released by China's National Bureau of Statistics on Friday January 17.2019 outputCrude steel: 996.34 million tonnes, up 8.3%Finished steel: 1.2 billion tonnes, up 9.8% ...Read More
Market participants in China say they are not worried by the expected increase in steel imports from the United States, even after the two major economic powers signed the phase one economic and trade agreement on Wednesday January 15. While the agreement does not set out the increase in quantity of US-origin steel exports China will accept, Chinese market participants do not expected the increase...Read More
The price of steel billet fell in most regions in the week ended Friday January 17 due to an unexpected drop in ferrous scrap prices in Turkey.The downturn in Turkish deep-sea scrap import prices affected scrap prices in other regions and put downward pressure on the global billet markets.A steel mill in the Izmir region booked a US cargo of 35,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (95:5) at $295 per tonne cfr la...Read More
High demand for pig iron, mainly in Asia, has supported further price growth in the export pig iron market in Brazil, sources told Fastmarkets during the week ended Friday January 17.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for pig iron, export, fob port of Vitoria/Rio, was $320-325 per tonne on Friday, up by $5 per tonne from $315-320 per tonne a week earlier.A cargo of 60,000 tonnes was bought for t...Read More
The three-month nickel price on the London Metal Exchange was higher at the close of trading on Monday January 20, back above the $14,000 per tonne threshold against the lowest turnover since December 24 last year.In contrast, lead futures edged lower against a similar absence of liquidity.Nickel's outright price on the LME closed at $14,025 per tonne on Monday afternoon, back above nearby resista...Read More
The pig iron import market in the United States has gone up because suppliers have increased their offers, citing low availability of material for February and March shipments, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday January 17.Fastmarkets' price assessment for pig iron, import, cfr Gulf of Mexico, US, was $350 per tonne on Friday, up from $340-345 per tonne a week earlier.Suppliers from the Commonweal...Read More
The London Metal Exchange will on February 1 introduce a reporting process that will increase transparency into levels of off-warrant stocks. The exchange announced the plans in November 2019 and aims to attract more metal back in LME sheds. It is controversial, but its passage into the LME rulebook on February 1 follows a consultation last year. Some market participants are now saying the LME sho...Read More
Prices in Asia's hot-rolled coil market are poised for more upticks immediately after the Lunar New Year holiday, according to industry sources."There is a sense of tightness in HRC supply in Asia, especially with fewer cargoes heading to the region from March and April," a source at a major re-roller in Vietnam said.This is largely due to an expected decrease in shipments from Indian steelmakers...Read More
The three-month nickel price on the London Metal Exchange was higher at the close of trading on Monday January 20, back above the $14,000 per tonne threshold against the lowest turnover since December 24 last year.In contrast, lead futures edged lower against a similar absence of liquidity.Nickel's outright price on the LME closed at $14,025 per tonne on Monday afternoon, back above nearby resista...Read More
The total traded volume for the high-grade 65% Fe iron ore futures on the Singapore Exchange (SGX) rose in January 2020, with 25,750 lots - or 2.575 million tonnes - being cleared as of January 20 at 2:30pm Singapore time. The latest total traded volume is the second highest recorded since its launch in December 2018, and represents a 13.9% increase from 2.26 million tonnes in September 2019, whic...Read More
Seaborne coking coal prices were largely stable on Monday January 20, with Chinese participants gradually withdrawing from the market ahead of a week-long break for the Chinese New Year that starts on Friday.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $152.23 per tonne, down $0.84 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $160.13 per tonne, up $0.23 per tonneHard coking coal, fob...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Northern Europe have increased with support from good demand and a lack of competitive import offers, sources told Fastmarkets on Monday January 20.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, ex-works Northern Europe, rose to ?,?449.48 ($498.39) per tonne on January 20, up by ?,?5.70 per tonne from ?,?443.78 per tonne on January 17.The index was...Read More
Key data from the pricing sessions in Asia and Europe in the week to Friday January 17.ChinaKey drivers The price of antimony, MMTA standard grade II, ddp China, gained some upward momentum in the latest assessment period, ending Wednesday January 15, after many suppliers raised their offer prices amid a growing number of inquiries.Several antimony consumers, who had maintained low inventorie...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Monday January 20 that are worth another look.High-grade iron ore derivative reaches second highest monthly traded volumes. The total traded volume for the high-grade 65% Fe iron ore futures on the Singapore Exchange (SGX) rose in January 2020, with 25,750 lots - or 2.575 million tonnes...Read More
The Chinese government published the long-awaited non-ferrous scrap metal renaming criterion on its website late on Friday January 17. This is the latest policy adopted by the world's biggest scrap metal importer. Copper scrap, of copper content ranging 94-99.9% and meeting certain impurities thresholds, will be renamed under five categories of renewable materials. Below is a table translated and...Read More
Industrial conglomerate GFG Alliance's existing aluminium portfolio will be consolidated with a focus on sustainable production under Alvance Aluminium Group, headquartered in Paris. The nuclear and hydro powered Dunkerque aluminium smelter, the largest aluminium smelter in Europe with around 280,000 tonnes per year of capacity, located in North France will now fall under the Alvance vertical. Its...Read More
The three-month lead price on the London Metal Exchange climbed by 0.5% during morning trading on Monday January 20, briefly breaching the $2,000 per tonne mark, while continued inflows of nickel have prompted minimal price reaction. Lead's outright price on the LME rose above $2,000 per tonne during morning trading before dipping back below the key resistance level to $1,985 per tonne. Trading vo...Read More
Fastmarkets will host a free web seminar on Wednesday February 26 at 10am London time, to discuss the current trends for alumina and the evolution of its pricing.Benchmark alumina prices have been static below $280 per tonne for the past month, with Chinese demand underpinning the market. Register here to join the webinar. Date Wednesday February 26, 2020Time 10am London timeJoin our market expert...Read More
Broader markets were generally firmer but quiet on Monday January 20, with equities in Asia mainly stronger, as were the base metals, while gold was holding up in high ground.Equities in Asia are consolidating recent gains, but multi-year highs in many regional equity indices suggests sentiment is bullish overall. Markets quiet ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays, which start on Friday in China....Read More