The import price for steel billet in Egypt fell in the week ended Thursday August 29, with market activity limited because buyers want to wait until a court decides on the imposition of an import safeguard duty and prices hit bottom.Egypt's Administrative Court suspended temporary safeguarding duties on billet and rebar in July, prompting a flurry of legal activity, which eventually led to the sch...Read More
The steel H-beam price in the Southern European domestic market decreased this week to move into alignment with prices in the northern market. Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel beams, domestic, delivered Southern Europe was ?,?575-605 ($637-671) per tonne on Wednesday August 28, down by ?,?10-35 per tonne week on week. Participants commented that regional disparities within the European mark...Read More
Transaction prices for domestic hot-rolled coil in Europe are expected to move up in the next couple of weeks on a seasonal recovery of trading activity, market sources say.But any price increase will likely be short-lived due to weak demand among end users. Such a scenario would have a negative impact on distributors caught between mills looking to raise prices and end users resisting such effort...Read More
Physical iron ore prices retreat slightly on Thursday August 29 while market participants await confirmation of production restrictions in China. Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $81.47 per tonne, down $0.98 per tonne. 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines, cfr Qingdao: $81.85 per tonne, down $0.98 per tonne. 62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $80.20 per tonne, down $0.96 per tonne...Read More
Seaborne coking coal prices were largely steady on Thursday August 29 after the most-recent transactions sent fob Australia and cfr China prices for premium products in opposite directions.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $149 per tonne, unchangedPremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $167.54 per tonne, unchanged Hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $134.01 per to...Read More
The iron ore market will be watching the rollout of China's policies and Chinese buyers' procurement strategies in the winter months to see what lies ahead for the steelmaking raw material, which has faced substantial price volatility this year. The winter heating season in China has become a crucial period for iron ore buyers and suppliers, with environmental protection a key aspect of China's 13...Read More
Export prices for Chinese stainless steel declined week on week despite the higher cost of nickel after suppliers lowered their asking prices in response to poor demand, market sources said.Concerns about Indonesia potentially bringing forward its ban on unprocessed nickel ore exports continued to provide support for nickel prices.The three-month nickel contract on the London Metal Exchange has av...Read More
Markets are once again consolidating in the morning of Friday August 30, waiting to see how the United States responds to China’s comments that it wants to make a trade deal.While any deal would likely turn sentiment bullish quickly, it does look as though the market is skeptical that anything will come of this. We should be braced for an active day because the next wave of US tariff increase...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 16 points in pre-opening trade. Index futures were virtually unchanged following release of economic news at 8:30 AM EDT. Consensus for July Personal Income was an increase of 0.3% versus a gain of 0.4% in June. Actual was an increase of 0.1%. Consensus for July Personal Spending was an increase of 0.5% versus a gain o...Read More
The three-month nickel price on the London Metal Exchange was higher at the close of trading on Wednesday August 28, breaching the $16,000 per tonne resistance level in a bout of short covering, while tightness in the metal's forward curve meant that it continued to trade at record levels.Some 8,000 lots of nickel changed hands by the close of trading on Wednesday, while the metal's price fluctuat...Read More
A summary of London Metal Exchange warrant premiums from across the globe for the week to Wednesday August 28.Please click...Read More
The London Metal Exchange tin price has fallen to a four-year low, and the sell-off has prompted somewhat different regional reactions in the week to Tuesday August 27. Europe sees little buying despite low tin prices. Low LME price prompts some US buyers to return Limited arbitrage opportunities keep cif Shanghai tin at $230-250 per tonne European premiums static despite 12% price slump In...Read More
An overview of the noble alloys markets and their latest price moves.Read More
An overview of the minor metals markets and their latest price moves.Read More
Turkish steel mills took a break from deep-sea scrap purchasing on Wednesday August 28, after booking a number of cargoes for September delivery over the past week, sources told Fastmarkets.Most recent bookings involved US and UK cargoes sold at $270 per tonne cfr for HMS 1&2 (80:20), dragging the daily indices down by almost $12 per tonne on Tuesday, August 27.But market participants were expecti...Read More
Key data from Fastmarkets' Wednesday August 28 pricing session in Europe. Key drivers The ferro-titanium market price range widened with suppliers reporting deals done at the upper and lower end of the new price range. Suppliers reported increased buying interest, although few deals done. One major deal was reported done to a German consumer. UK producer FE Mottram has yet to restart p...Read More
Currency exchange rates can make or break a steel trade, and with forex volatility in emerging markets expected to continue for the rest of the year, the Asian ferrous markets are likely to see more price fluctuations before the end of 2019.These five currency pairs should be on your watch-list for the significant influences they could bring to bear on key global steel and ferrous scrap trade flow...Read More
With gold prices up at near six-year highs, markets remain nervous on Wednesday August 28 about just how much damage the United States-China trade war is doing and whether it will be reversible before it leads to a global recession. Most base metals prices have fallen to low levels and are failing to get any support while the depressed macro environment dominates. The exceptions are nickel, and to...Read More
Australian lithium spodumene producer Galaxy Resources has bought Alita Resources' debt for $31.1 million, including interest, fees and costs. Alita Resources, also based in Australia, suspended securities trading on August 14 to discuss its debt situation with its consortium of lenders led by Tribeca Investment Partners, Fastmarkets reported earlier. On August 16, Tribeca gave Alita a notice...Read More
China's domestic hot-rolled coil market shed most of its downward momentum on Wednesday August 28 on higher trading activity, though overseas buyers submitted lower bids for exports of the flat steel product.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,600-3,610 yuan ($503-504) per tonne, narrowing downward 20 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tangshan): 3,600-3,620 yuan per tonne, widening upward 20 yuan per...Read More