Prices for rebar produced and delivered in Southern Europe widened upward by ?,?5 per tonne on Wednesday June 5 on limited trading, but weak demand continued, market participants told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic rebar in Southern Europe rose to ?,?495-515 ($557-579) per tonne delivered on Wednesday from ?,?495-510 per tonne delivered on May 29."The price has...Read More
Domestic prices for hollow steel sections in Europe were unchanged this week, but feedstock costs have begun to recover from recent losses, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday June 5.Fastmarkets' domestic price assessment for commodity-size, grade-S235 square hollow sections made in Northern Europe was unchanged week on week at ?,?600-630 ($675-709) per tonne delivered on Wednesday.Some market p...Read More
Steel H-beam prices in both Northern and Southern Europe were unchanged this week but sentiment was negative due to the low levels of demand, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday June 5.Fastmarkets' price assessment for domestic S235-grade, 200x200mm, category-2 H-beam in Northern Europe was unchanged week on week at ?,?585-615 ($658-692) per tonne delivered on Wednesday.One European mill was hop...Read More
Turkish mills continued their absence from the deep-sea scrap market on Wednesday June 5 while the country was on the week-long Eid al-Fitr public holiday, sources told Fastmarkets.The market will remain subdued for the remainder of the week while Turkey marks the end of the period of abstinence for the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.As a result of the lack of...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices moved up slightly on Wednesday June 5 on rebounding futures in the final hours of trading, though the increases resulted in a drop in buying activity. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,920-3,960 yuan ($567-573) per tonne, up 10-20 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): 3,850-3,900 yuan per tonne, up 30 yuan per tonneA few traders who did not have a lot of material...Read More
Domestic prices for hollow steel sections in Europe were unchanged this week, but feedstock costs have begun to recover from recent losses, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday June 5.Fastmarkets' domestic price assessment for commodity-size, grade-S235 square hollow sections made in Northern Europe was unchanged week on week at ?,?600-630 ($675-709) per tonne delivered on Wednesday.Some market p...Read More
South Korean steel majors Posco and Hyundai Steel have both been asked by provincial governments to idle their blast furnaces over pollution levels, market sources told Fastmarkets MB on Tuesday June 4."However, there is no confirmation as to whether both steelmakers will stop their blast furnaces and they...Read More
A 50:50 joint venture between Luxembourg-based trader/steel producer Duferco and United States steelmaker Nucor Corp has announced plans to build a ?,?150 million steel beam rolling mill in Brescia, Northern Italy.The Duferdofin-Nucor mill is expected to be fully operational by mid-2022 and will have an annual production of more than 1 million tonnes of...Read More
Demand for flat steel in Turkey improved in May especially in the export market, after the United States halved its import tariffs for Turkish steel to 25%, market participants told Fastmarkets. And local producers have now filled their order books until August, they said on Friday May 31. Turkish steel prices also began to increase from May 17, when the US duties wer...Read More
An overview of the minor metals markets and the reasons for any price moves.Read More
Domestic prices for cold-rolled coil (CRC) have moved up this week despite trading activity remaining slow, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday June 5.The reason behind the increase was a combination of upward sentiment in hot-rolled coil, which is used as the feedstock for CRC, and an expected reduction in flat steel output in Europe.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic CRC in Nort...Read More
Domestic transaction prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) in the EU have moved up over the past week and steelmakers were looking for further price rises, market sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday June 5.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic HRC in Northern Europe was ?,?485-495 ($546-557) per tonne ex-works on Wednesday, up by ?,?5 per tonne week-on-week.The assessment represented tran...Read More
The benchmark copper price London Metal Exchange ended 1.5% lower on Wednesday June 5, leading the rest of the base metals lower.The three-month copper price closed at $5,807 per tonne, not far above its 2019-to-date low of $5,725 per tonne. "Our technical indicators suggest LME copper is still in a prevailing downtrend. We would not be surprised by renewed selling pressure," Fastmarkets base...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday June 5 that are worth another look.Nickel market analysts were resolutely bearish during a pricing panel at Fastmarkets' seventh International Nickel conference in Amsterdam on Wednesday June 5, forecasting that the London Metal Exchange three-month nickel price is unlikely to breach $13,000 per tonne this year. ArcelorMittal...Read More
The GFG Alliance, owner of global steelmaker Liberty House, has appointed Neil Barrell global head of integration and performance, it said on Wednesday June 5.Barrell will begin his new role on July 1 and will have "a remit to optimize GFG's growing network of manufacturing operations," GFG Alliance said.Liberty House owns several steel mills across the...Read More
The global alumina market has become more sentiment-driven over the past year and knee-jerk reactions have become more common, market sources told Fastmarkets.A significant part of this change was a consequence of the chaos that developed in the market after producer Norsk Hydro was compelled to declare force majeure at its Alunorte alumina refinery in Brazil in March 2018."If I look back, this is...Read More
Troubled UK long steel producer British Steel entered compulsory liquidation on May 22. Fastmarkets examines the reasons behind the company's recent struggles, from uncertainty about Brexit and a slump in orders, to rising costs for raw materials.Brexit uncertaintyThe future of British Steel remains uncertain, with the UK's Insolvency Service approaching "more than 80 potential trade purchasers" t...Read More
The benchmark copper price London Metal Exchange ended 1.5% lower on Wednesday June 5, leading the rest of the base metals lower.The three-month copper price closed at $5,807 per tonne, not far above its 2019-to-date low of $5,725 per tonne. "Our technical indicators suggest LME copper is still in a prevailing downtrend. We would not be surprised by renewed selling pressure," Fastmarkets base...Read More
Nickel market analysts were resolutely bearish during a pricing panel at the Fastmarkets' seventh International Nickel conference in Amsterdam on Wednesday June 5, forecasting that the London Metal Exchange three-month nickel price is unlikely to breach $13,000 per tonne this year. The LME three-month price is currently trading below $12,000 per tonne, hitting an intraday high of $11,860 per...Read More
China's hot-rolled coil prices slid further on Wednesday June 5 amid persistently thin trading, though some exporters showed little willingness to sell any lower.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,870-3,880 yuan ($561-562) per tonne, down 10 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tianjin): 3,800-3,810 yuan per tonne, narrowing downward 10 yuan per tonnePrices continued to drop, with trading being thinner...Read More