The UK ferrous scrap market for deliveries to domestic consumers in May has settled at prices lower than a month earlier, matching losses reported in the export market, trade sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday May 15.Export prices have fallen in line with weaker sales into the key destination of Turkey, they added.Most UK deals for May deliveries to domestic consumers have been settled at ?15...Read More
Turkish steel producers have continued to book deep-sea scrap cargoes this week, with prices falling further, sources said on Wednesday May 15.The mills were trying to keep their deep-sea scrap purchases as slow as possible, to put downward pressure on prices, because demand for long steel products was sluggish and values were falling, Fastmarkets was told.But two steel mills came to the market...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices picked up on Wednesday May 15 following gains in China's futures market, and amid concerns that BHP's mine maintenance could affect supply at a later date.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $96.95 per tonne cfr Qingdao, up by $2.61 per tonne.MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $95.63 per tonne cfr Qingdao, up by $2.61 per tonne.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $98.53 per tonn...Read More
The latest bids, offers and deals in the global markets for iron ore, pig iron, direct-reduced iron and other steelmaking raw materials. Latest transactions: iron oreIron oreVale, Beijing Iron Ore Trading Center (Corex), 90,000 tonnes of 65% Fe Iron Ore...Read More
Prices for seaborne coking coal to China regained some upward momentum on Wednesday May 15, with a transaction being concluded above prevailing levels.A top Australian brand with laycan set for June 19-25 was traded at $212.66 per tonne cfr China, sources told Fastmarkets during the day. This is $1.11 per tonne higher than a transaction involving the same brand late last week.On the same day, anot...Read More
The possibility of another auction of indium stock held by the defunct Fanya Metal Exchange has weakened the buying appetite of consumers both in China and abroad. Word had circulated in the market since last week that around 20-100 tonnes of indium held in Fanya's warehouses could be auctioned by the end of May, market sources told Fastmarkets MB. Officials from the Alibaba online platform, where...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices regained some losses on Wednesday May 15 amid a pick-up in trading activity after futures rebounded.Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 4,000-4,010 yuan ($582-583) per tonne, narrowing from 3,990-4,040 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): 3,930-3,980 yuan per tonne, up 20 yuan per tonneA Shanghai-based trader said trading activity during the day was better than on T...Read More
China's hot-rolled coil prices were largely steady on Wednesday May 15 amid sparse trading in the domestic market, though trading activity in the export segment appeared to pick up after exporters cut their offers.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,990-4,000 yuan ($580-582) per tonne, unchangedNorthern China (Tianjin): 3,870-3,880 yuan per tonne, narrowing from both endsTrading was persistently t...Read More
Markets were looking brighter on the morning of Wednesday May 15, with the equities and metals firmer, this despite some further poor economic data in China and the uncertainty about which direction US-China trade talks will go.China's CSI 300 up by 2.6%; LME base metals up an average of 0.4%, after a 1.2% gain on TuesdayChina's fixed asset investment, industrial production and retail sales, all c...Read More
Some mobile phone producers have started to develop devices that support the fifth generation (5G) network, but long-term support for cobalt demand from 5G phones will be limited, Fastmarkets heard on the sidelines of a cobalt conference in Hong Kong this week.There was likely to be an instant boost for cobalt demand, however, when many consumers replaced their 4G mobile phones with those enabled...Read More
Minor metals and ferro-alloys trader Mart?-n N????ez has joined Swiss commodity trading house ArrowMetals after spending five years at UK-based TMT Metals Holdings (TMT), Fastmarkets learned on Wednesday May 15.N????ez joined TMT in April 2014 where he traded ferro-alloys, non-ferrous metals and...Read More
The following Fastmarkets minor metals prices changed on Wednesday May 15:Minor metalsAntimony MB Chinese free market MMTA standard grade II, yuan/tonne: 40,000-41,500 yuan per tonne from 42,000-43,000 yuanBismuth MB free market, $/lb: $3.30-3.50 per lb from $3.30-3.70Cobalt MB China...Read More
Follow up on this year's Fastmarkets Battery Materials Conference in Shanghai with this comprehensive downloadable PDF that brings together the full coverage from the event.Our Battery Materials Conference 2019 in Shanghai in April was one of the many industry-leading events we curate, organize and run, bringing together the biggest OEMs, battery manufacturers, cathode makers and chemical companie...Read More
Import prices for stainless steel in East Asia declined over the week ended Wednesday May 15 because of low buying interest in a bearish market that followed the escalation of trade tensions between China and the United States.China has announced that it will increase duties on $60 billion-worth of US goods from June 1, in a retaliatory action after the latter country raised tariffs on $200 billio...Read More
The following Fastmarkets UK non-ferrous scrap and foundry ingot prices changed on Wednesday May 15:Aluminium scrapLoose old rolled cuttings: ?650-675 per tonne from ?660-680Cast wheels: ?1,080-1,100 per tonne from ?1,100-1,130Commercial turnings: ?550-580 per...Read More
Prices for mesh-quality wire rod in Europe fell this week following a drop in finished mesh product prices and due to buyer hesitance, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday May 15. Fastmarkets' weekly domestic price assessment for mesh-quality wire rod in Northern Europe fell to ?,?515-535 ($578-600) per tonne delivered on Wednesday, down ?,?10-15 week on week from ?,?525-550 per tonne delive...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 10 points in pre-opening trade. Index futures moved slightly higher following release of U.S. economic news at 8:30 AM EDT. Consensus for Weekly Jobless Claims was 220,000 versus 228,000 last week. Actual was 212,000. Consensus for April Housing Starts was 1.205 million units versus a revised 1.168 million units in Mar...Read More
A summary of base metals premiums from across the globe for the week to Tuesday May 14.Click on...Read More
Prices in the London Metal Exchange base metals complex became firmer on Tuesday May 14 when it was realized that the effects of proposed Chinese tariffs side-stepped the base metals to focus on imports of minor metals and ferro-alloys.The duties would be imposed by China on materials from the United States from June 1, in retaliation for increased US import duties on Chinese goods in the two coun...Read More
Russian aluminium producer Rusal said it will focus on restoring its market position after its first-quarter revenues plunged by 20.9% year on year in a period "challenged by the past year's events". Rusal reported revenue in the first quarter of 2019 of $2.17 billion, a fall of 20.9% year on year from $2.744 billion. The company said the fall in revenue was due to the decrease in the London Metal...Read More