Largo Resources has appointed Paulo Misk as its president and chief executive officer, effective September 8, replacing Mark Smith, who had held the position since 2015. Misk has been with Largo Resources since 2014. Prior to joining the Toronto-based producer, Misk worked at Anglo American as its niobium and phosphates operational director. The company also announced on Monday September 9...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Monday September 9 that are worth another look.European authorities have approved an adjustment to the safeguard quota system, lowering the annual quota increase amount to 3%, as part of a review of the existing safeguard mechanism on September 4, market sources told Fastmarkets on Friday September 6.Spot copper concentrates treatment a...Read More
Key data from the Monday August 9 pricing session in London and Shanghai. Fastmarkets' benchmark alumina index, fob Australia fell to $296.08 per tonne on Monday, down from $298.91 per tonne on September 6. The index is at its lowest since August 16 when it hit $296.06 per tonne and is down 25% from the start of 2019 when it was at $396.24 per tonne on January 2. Key drivers: ...Read More
Low spot copper concentrate treatment and refining charges (TC/RCs) cif Asia Pacific will not lead to production cuts at Chinese copper smelters this year because many signed favorable long contracts at the end of 2018 and smelters remain cash positive, according to analysts attending a copper conference in Qiqihar, China, on Friday September 6. But expectations of a continued downtrend in TC/RCs...Read More
Demand for copper in northeast China is expected to grow at an average of 8% per year by 2030, Yang Changhua, principal copper analyst at Chinese research house Antaike, told delegates at a copper conference in the city of Qiqihar on Friday September 6.The estimated annual growth rate of 8% is four times that of China's nationwide average of 2% in 2018. Growth at that pace would raise copper consu...Read More
Timothy Reyes will assume a new position as executive vice president and chief commercial officer of Alcoa from November 1.Reyes was previous executive vice president and president of aluminium at the aluminium producer. In his new role he will be accountable for strategies across the bauxite, alumina, aluminium and energy markets. Alcoa announced on Monday September 9 a series of...Read More
Alumina prices have been trading close to their lowest level in over two years. Alice Mason and Hui Li review the market factors that drove prices down and consider the outlook.Global alumina prices have been on a rollercoaster over the past year due to extreme changes in the supply picture and the varying role of China in the market.On August 19 this year, Fastmarkets assessed the benchmark alumi...Read More
Strong gains in nickel prices since the start of the month and the expectation that this strength will persist are likely to slow the pace of nickel-rich battery adoption in the electric vehicle (EV) market in the near term, market participants told Fastmarkets.But this dynamic is unlikely to result in cobalt demand picking up significantly, they added.Following an announcement by the Indonesian g...Read More
Steel plate prices in the United States dropped for the first time since mid-July, after holding at $35.50 per hundredweight ($710 per short ton) for more than one month, following a negative performance trend across the domestic steel market.Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel cut-to-length plate carbon grade, fob mill US, declined to $34.50 per cwt ($690 per ton) on Friday September 6, down...Read More
Flat steel producer ArcelorMittal Italia will continue operations at its plant in Taranto, Italy, with a new decree granting the steelmaker temporary legal immunity for breaches of environmental regulations, the company has announced.The steelmaker had previously expressed concerns that the adoption of the so-called Crescita Decree would threaten the operation of the plant.When ArcelorMittal acqui...Read More
The prices of rebar and wire rod exported from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) continued to decline in the week to Monday September 9, under pressure from weak demand in the major sales outlets as well as growing competition with Turkish suppliers.Indications of offers from CIS mills, particularly from Belarus, were reported at $420 per tonne fob Black Sea.But bids for CIS rebar from...Read More
Import prices for steel slab in Southeast Asia and East Asia have fallen for a third consecutive week amid a downturn in the global steel markets that has damped buying interest for slab, market sources told Fastmarkets on Monday September 9.Buyers were likely to take a wait-and-see approach amid expectations that prices will fall, a trader in Indonesia said.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment fo...Read More
Turkish rebar is set to become more competitive in the Singapore import market again due to falling scrap prices.The weekly Fastmarkets price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar) import, cfr Singapore - which mainly looks at cargoes sold into Singapore on a theoretical-weight basis - was $460-470 per tonne for the week to Monday September 9, falling by $5 per tonne from a week earlier.Mark...Read More
The price trend for hot-rolled coil in Asia remains uncertain for many market participants given price rebounds in China but continued bearish sentiment in the key import market of Vietnam.Fastmarkets' steel HRC import, cfr Vietnam assessment, which mainly looks at Chinese 2-3mm re-rolling-grade SAE1006 HRC and equivalent products sold into Vietnam, was $457-465 per tonne cfr for the week ending M...Read More
Domestic scrap prices in the Turkish market have gone down over the past week amid falling imported scrap values, sources said on Monday September 9.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel scrap, auto bundle scrap, domestic, delivered Turkey, was TRY1,445-1,650 ($252-288) per tonne on Monday, down from last week's TRY1,520-1,770 per tonne.This downward movement in the weekly assessment came...Read More
The Turkish steel mills held back from the deep-sea scrap markets at the beginning of the week, expecting further prices decreases, sources said on Monday September 9.Four deep-sea bookings were made last week, at prices which pushed down the daily scrap indices by more than $18 per tonne.Three bookings on September 3 lowered prices by $12.30 per tonne day on day. On September 5, prices dropped by...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices rose strongly above $90 per tonne cfr China on Monday September 9, reflecting gains in the futures and steel markets after the Chinese government boosted liquidity in the commercial banking sector.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $92.97 per tonne, up $3.92 per tonne.62% Fe Pilbara Blend fines, cfr Qingdao: $93.36 per tonne, up $3.92 per tonn...Read More
Seaborne coking coal prices were largely unchanged on Monday September 9, with buyers and sellers adopting a wait-and-see approach to the market.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $152.20 per tonne, up $0.77 per tonne Premium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $169.07 per tonne, up $0.06 per tonneHard coking coal, fob DBCT: $134.01 per tonne, unchangedHard coking coal, cfr Jingtan...Read More
Seaborne iron ore concentrate prices rallied last week in line with the general market rebound, while pellet prices underperformed amid increasing spot supplies.ConcentrateThe weekly Fastmarkets index for iron ore 66% Fe concentrate, cfr Qingdao stood at $95.06 per tonne last Friday September 6, up by $5.81 per tonne week on week.The daily Fastmarkets index for iron ore 65% Fe Brazil-origin fines,...Read More
Billet prices in most markets around the world tumbled to set fresh year-to-date lows last week amid sluggish demand in the downstream long steel markets. The downturn in the Turkish ferrous scrap market also contributed to bearish sentiment. Fastmarkets' daily index for steel scrap, HMS 1&2 (80:20 mix), North Europe origin, cfr Turkey was $244.15 per tonne last Friday September 6, its lowest sinc...Read More