ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India (AM/NS India) has started up a second 6-million-tonne-per-year pellet plant at its Paradeep complex in Odisha, taking the company's pelletization capacity to 20 million tpy, the company said earlier this month.The Paradeep complex will have capacity to produce 12 million tpy of direct reduced iron ore pellet after the commissioning of the second stage of production...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.In the iron ore market, supply issues including heavy rains at the start of the year, followed by staffing problems during the Covid-19 pandemic, have affected exports from Brazil. This has helped Australia gain a larger market share, but since June, Brazilian export volumes have returned to levels last seen before the...Read More
Fourth quarter negotiations for aluminium into Main Japanese Ports (MJP) between producers and market participants have been extended for another week, with negotiations now expected to conclude on Friday September 17.This marks the second postponement for the fourth-quarter negotiations, after the first postponement to September 10 failed to reach a conclusion.Market players had already expe...Read More
China's production and sales of automobiles continued to decline on both a monthly and an annual basis in August 2021, after Covid-19 outbreaks choked the supply chain and cost pressure ramped up, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) said in its monthly report published on Friday September 10.For the same month, overall car exports, output and sales figures for new energy vehic...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices inched down on Monday September 13 due to weak buying interest from end users, sources said.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $123.84 per tonne, down $5.87 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $124.16 per tonne, down $6.09 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $97.99 per tonne, down $6.13 per tonne65% Fe Br...Read More
China's nickel sulfate prices softened in the week to Friday September 10 amid an increase in the supply of mixed hydroxide precipitate (MHP), though strong nickel prices on both the London Metal Exchange and Shanghai Futures Exchange kept the spot market quiet.Fastmarkets assessed prices for nickel sulfate min 21%, max 22.5%; cobalt 10ppm max, exw China at 36,500-38,000 yuan ($5,663-5,896) per to...Read More
Key data from Fastmarkets' pricing session in China on Friday September 10.Key driversChina's cobalt metal price moved up amid continuous rising local futures prices and tight spot supply among sellers. Some buyers restocked small-volume materials, but others remained cautious.The cobalt tetroxide price increased further, with most producers insisting...Read More
Base metals prices were mixed on both the LME and the SHFE this morning, Monday September 13. But while the mood in broader markets remains somewhat negative, the base metals seem to be entering the post-summer period in a more bullish mood. There is a barrage of key Chinese economic data out this week, which the market is likely to watch closely for signs that the Chinese economy is slowingBase m...Read More
The Cobalt standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb trade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparencyinto the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies.Fastmarkets assessed Cobalt standard...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts is ready to view.Stainless steel prices and margins for stainless steel producers have risen notably over the past few months in both Europe and the United States, but there are now signs that the rally is petering out.A clear reason for the halt to rising prices comes from the near 20% drop in nickel prices seen in late February/early March,...Read More
Key data from Fastmarkets' pricing session in Europe on Monday September 13.Key drivers Spot activity has started to pick up, with the international cobalt metal price showing continued gains over the past week. Fastmarkets' price assessment for cobalt, standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam, was $24.00-24.60 per lb on September 13, compared with...Read More
Fastmarkets proposes to change the frequency of its iron ore value-in-use indices from weekly to daily.Fastmarkets' iron ore value-in-use adjustments for iron, silica, alumina and phosphorus are currently weekly indices with a data inclusion cut-off time each Friday at 6pm Singapore local time, and a publication time each Monday at 6.30pm Singapore local time. The chemistry adjustments represent t...Read More
Chilean copper miner Codelco's management and the Sindicato de Uni??n Plantas (Suplant) trade union reached a new collective wage agreement on Friday September 10, which should end a strike that has lasted for three-and-a-half weeks.The Suplant union, which represents employees at the company's Andina concentrator plant, rejected the last offer that came within the standard negotiation period and...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.Iron ore remains the most bullish commodity of the year, with prices fuelled by Chinese demand and supply disruptions in Brazil, along with bullish sentiment. But prices are expected to come down because Brazilian exports have begun to recover, and have reached their highest level since the Brumadinho dam disaster in 2019. W...Read More
The recovery of the Brazilian domestic flat steel market appears to have peaked in recent weeks, but it is expected to continue strong through 2022, according to ArcelorMittal Brasil chief executive officer Benjamin Baptista Filho."We saw since last year a very strong recovery of the Brazilian manufacturing activity, especially from the agribusiness sector, and demand for steel rose in a sustained...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices inched down on Monday September 13 due to weak buying interest from end users, sources said.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $123.84 per tonne, down $5.87 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $124.16 per tonne, down $6.09 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $97.99 per tonne, down $6.13 per tonne65% Fe Br...Read More
Stainless steel prices continue to register new highs around the end of the first half of 2021 and steelmakers continue to enjoy outsized margins.They have responded in recent months by increasing their output, which has now pushed above pre-pandemic levels and will eventually restore balance to the market.For now, though, supply gaps are still being filled and buyers find themselves competing aga...Read More
Key data from Fastmarkets' pricing session in China on Friday September 10.Key driversChina's cobalt metal price moved up amid continuous rising local futures prices and tight spot supply among sellers. Some buyers restocked small-volume materials, but others remained cautious.The cobalt tetroxide price increased further, with most producers insisting...Read More
Coking coal prices in the fob market jumped on Monday September 13 due to tight supply; domestic coking coal supply in China was also tight, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $487.33 per tonne, up $6.68 per tonneHard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $446.56 per tonne, up $2.52 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $362.10 per tonne, up $28.98 per...Read More
The Cobalt alloy grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lbtrade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparencyinto the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies.Read More