An overview of the minor metals markets and their latest price moves.Read More
Key data from the November 27 pricing session in London. Key drivers: - Cobalt prices continue to come under pressure while traders seek to destock ahead of the end of the year.- Spot inquiries are scant,...Read More
Turkish steel mills have started booking deep-sea scrap for January shipment at higher prices, sources said on Wednesday November 27.A steel mill in the Marmara region booked a European cargo, comprising 25,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (75:25), 5,000 tonnes of shredded and 5,000 tonnes of a mixture of HMS 1, and plate and structural scrap (P&S) at an average price of $262.50 per tonne cfr late on Tuesday...Read More
Further positive signs of a phase one trade deal between the United States and China boosted sentiment across a broad selection of markets on Tuesday November 26, and that included most of the base metals, but so far today metal prices have generally been consolidating.US equity markets climbed to fresh highs on Tuesday after US President Donald Trump said the US and China are close to agreeing a...Read More
Key data from the November 27 pricing session in London. Key drivers: - Cobalt prices continue to come under pressure while traders seek to destock ahead of the end of the year.- Spot inquiries are scant,...Read More
Key data from the Wednesday November 27 pricing session in Shanghai. Key drivers The Chinese cobalt sulfate price broke the eight-week downward streak, holding on fresh restocking appetite and producer reluctance to sell at lower levels amid strength in the metal's futures market. The cobalt metal contract price on the Wuxi Stainless Steel Exchange rose by nearly 1% on Wednesday after b...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Northern Europe were expected to rise due to restocking activity and lower availability in the spot market, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday November 27.Fastmarkets' latest weekly price assessment for steel HRC, domestic, exw Northern Europe, was ?,?420-425 ($463-468) per tonne on November 27, unchanged over the week.The assessment was based on the lates...Read More
China's hot-rolled coil prices weakened on Wednesday November 27, with trading being moderate.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,690-3,720 yuan ($525-530) per tonne, widening downward by 10 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tangshan): 3,630-3,640 yuan per tonne, down 10-20 yuan per tonneAlthough prices in the east of the country remained largely stable, a source there said that was partly b...Read More
China's plate exporters kept prices unaltered over the past week on domestic gains, but trading was thin.Fastmarkets' price assessment for January shipments of steel heavy plate export, fob China main port was $460-465 per tonne for the week ended Tuesday November 26, unchanged from a week earlier.A Beijing-based trader heard a plate deal sold to Japan last week for road paving, with the base...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday November 27 that are worth another look.Brazilian steelmaker Gerdau has agreed to buy 96.4% of Sider??rgica Latino-Americana (Silat) shares from Spanish group Hierros A????n for $110.8 million, in a shift from its divestment strategy of the past four years.Shifting London Metal Exchange zinc and lead prices have dictated premi...Read More
The price of steel mesh-quality wire rod in the Northern Europe domestic market edged upward this week, primarily because of higher ferrous scrap costs, Fastmarkets heard on Wednesday November 27.Mills said that recent price increases had been readily accepted by consumers and that order books were now at very healthy levels, in terms of both month-on-month and year-on-year comparisons.Indeed, one...Read More
The price of rebar in the Southern European domestic market increased this week on improved demand in Italy and Spain and higher scrap costs, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday November 27.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, delivered Southern Europe, was ?,?465-480 ($512-529) per tonne on Wednesday, up by ?,?10-15 per tonne week on week.Following m...Read More
Turkish steel mills have started booking deep-sea scrap for January shipment at higher prices, sources said on Wednesday November 27.A steel mill in the Marmara region booked a European cargo, comprising 25,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (75:25), 5,000 tonnes of shredded and 5,000 tonnes of a mixture of HMS 1, and plate and structural scrap (P&S) at an average price of $262.50 per tonne cfr late on Tuesday...Read More
Physical iron ore prices generally weakened on Wednesday November 27 amid further losses in futures and steel markets.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $87.56 per tonne, down $1.74 per tonne.62% Fe Pilbara Blend fines, cfr Qingdao: $87.59 per tonne, down $1.74 per tonne.62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $87.03 per tonne, down $1.68 per tonne.58% Fe fines hi...Read More
Algerian Qatari Steel (AQS) started its own steel production last week, the company told Fastmarkets at the sidelines of the Arab Iron & Steel Union (AISU) annual summit in Tunisia on Wednesday November 27. The company used to import steel billet, but a source at the company told Fastmarkets: "We have stopped importing semis some time ago, continuing with re-rolling billet from stocks imported ear...Read More
Iranian billet producers achieved higher price levels in new deals amid strong demand and positive sentiment in the global market, sources said.Recent sales of Iranian billet scheduled for shipment in January were reported within the range of $364-375 per tonne fob to customers in Africa, the Middle East and Asia.This compares with $355-365 per tonne fob in the previous round of sales.Read More
China's domestic rebar prices dropped on Wednesday November 27 amid inactive trading. Eastern China (Shanghai): 4,050-4,080 yuan ($577-581) per tonne, down 30 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): 3,790-3,830 yuan per tonne, down 10 yuan per tonneCustomers in eastern China are waiting for rebar cargoes from northern mills to arrive over the coming couple of weeks, which...Read More
Algerian Qatari Steel (AQS) started its own steel production last week, the company told Fastmarkets at the sidelines of the Arab Iron & Steel Union (AISU) annual summit in Tunisia on Wednesday November 27. The company used to import steel billet, but a source at the company told Fastmarkets: "We have stopped importing semis some time ago, continuing with re-rolling billet from stocks imported ear...Read More
Anglo American has sold a 12% interest in the Grosvenor coal mine in Queensland, Australia, to a consortium of Japanese companies, including steelmaker Nippon Steel, it said on Wednesday November 27.Under the terms of the agreement, which is subject to a number of conditions prior to completion, Anglo American will receive cash proceeds of approximately $141 million in respect of the 12% minority...Read More
Global crude steel production totaled 151.49 million tonnes in October, down by 2.8% from the same month a year earlier, according to data released by the World Steel Association (Worldsteel) on Tuesday November 26.Chinese steelmakers contributed 81.52 million tonnes to that amount, a decrease of 0.6% from the 82.01 million tonnes they produced in October 2018.Indian...Read More