Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Friday May 3 that are worth another look.An agreement in next week's labor negotiations at Codelco's Chuquicamata mining and smelting division could prove tough to secure, Fastmarkets learned on Friday May 3. Codelco has invited unions No 1, 2 and 3 of the Chuquicamata division to hold talks about work contracts in Calama in northern Ch...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were lower this morning. S&P 500 futures were down 44 points in pre-opening trade. Index futures responded to a twitter comment by President Donald Trump that the tariff rate will increase next week from 10% to 25% on $200 billion Chinese goods. In addition, Trump threatened to impose a 25% tariff on additional Chinese goods valued at $325 billion. The Shanghai Compos...Read More
Russia has criticized Mexico at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) for maintaining anti-dumping duties on Russian steel exports, which it claims are outdated, being based on pricing assessments using data from a different country.The Mexican government used this method for past dumping calculations on Russian steel because it is permitted under WTO rules where a government dominates an economy tha...Read More
UK long steel producer British Steel has been granted approval from a French court to take over troubled French special steelmaker Ascoval, the company said on Thursday May 2.Following the approval from the tribunal de grande instance (TGI) in Strasbourg, Ascoval, which is located in Saint-Saulve, Northern France, will officially become part of British Steel on Wednesday May 15 and will be renamed...Read More
While 2016 and 2017 each had a single, clear factor that drove up seaborne coking coal prices, this was a key feature that was missing last year, when the market continued to strengthen regardless.And if the first few months of 2019 are anything to go by, the seaborne coking coal market might have just reached a new level of complexity.When China decided to tackle overcapacity in its coal sector i...Read More
Fastmarkets MB proposes to launch a weekly price assessment of South America import aluminium-zinc alloy coated steel coil, reported on a dollar-per-tonne cfr South America basis.Market participants have been reporting significant liquidity in this market, with steady volumes being traded weekly.Based on the most widely traded product specification, the weekly price assessment for S...Read More
The pig iron market in the United States was under pressure from lower prices for high-phosphorous material from Brazil, while supplies of low-phosphorous material continued to be restricted, Fastmarkets heard on Friday May 3."The only thing really dragging pig iron [prices] down is the weak domestic [pig iron] market in Brazil and the lack of markets for high phosphorous material," one buyer in t...Read More
The dip in tin prices over the past two months reflects technical factors and a drop in semiconductor sales but a rebound is hard to envision despite an largely solid fundamental backdrop.Weakness in the global semiconductor sector has contributed to an 11% drop in the LME three-month tin price since mid-April - the sharpest fall across the base metals.The three-month price fell just 2.9% in 2018...Read More
Aluminium's three-month price on the London Metal Exchange fell over 1% at the close of trading on Friday May 3, with downward pressure emerging amid more than 230,000 tonnes of inflows over the week, while continued US dollar strength deters investors. Aluminium registered just over 10,000 lots traded at the close this afternoon, the lowest count since April 25, with thin volumes persisting due t...Read More
This recent drop in copper prices is not reflective of the current tight supply and demand fundamentals and a rebound could take place as soon as next week, Codelco's chief commercial officer Roberto Ecclefield told Fastmarkets on Friday May 3."Once China re-opens on Monday, we should see copper prices rebound," Ecclefield said in an interview. "The current price doesn't reflect fundamentals."Mark...Read More
The dip in tin prices over the past two months reflects technical factors and a drop in semiconductor sales but a rebound is hard to envision despite an largely solid fundamental backdrop.Weakness in the global semiconductor sector has contributed to an 11% drop in the LME three-month tin price since mid-April - the sharpest fall across the base metals.The three-month price fell just 2.9% in 2018...Read More
Global ferrous scrap prices trended downward in the week ended Friday May 3 due to low demand and high inventories held by steel mills.There was mixed sentiment about spot price trends. While most market participants expected a continued softening of prices, others expected prices to become firmer once holidays in Europe, Turkey, Japan and China came to an end. Weak steel markets in Turkey damp de...Read More
Key data from the Friday May 3 pricing session in London: Key drivers: - Rally pauses and spot activity slows; buyers in Europe and parts of Asia were out of the market for some of the week. Some buyers are believed to have covered their nearby requirements last month and are awaiting direction before stocking up any further after the rally plateaued over the past week. - Sellers have so far prove...Read More
Aluminium's three-month price on the London Metal Exchange fell over 1% at the close of trading on Friday May 3, with downward pressure emerging amid more than 230,000 tonnes of inflows over the week, while continued US dollar strength deters investors. Aluminium registered just over 10,000 lots traded at the close this afternoon, the lowest count since April 25, with thin volumes persisting due t...Read More
An overview of the battery raw materials markets and their price moves.Read More
This recent drop in copper prices is not reflective of the current tight supply and demand fundamentals and a rebound could take place as soon as next week, Codelco's chief commercial officer Roberto Ecclefield told Fastmarkets on Friday May 3."Once China re-opens on Monday, we should see copper prices rebound," Ecclefield said in an interview. "The current price doesn't reflect fundamentals."Mark...Read More
The dip in tin prices over the past two months reflects technical factors and a drop in semiconductor sales but a rebound is hard to envision despite an largely solid fundamental backdrop.Weakness in the global semiconductor sector has contributed to an 11% drop in the LME three-month tin price since mid-April - the sharpest fall across the base metals.The three-month price fell just 2.9% in 2018...Read More
Copper concentrates treatment charges (TCs) declined in early May after traders accepted recent tender tonnages at surprisingly low levels, which stretched the gap between acceptable purchase levels for traders and smelters to its widest in the past year.As of May 3, Fastmarkets' Asia-Pacific TC/RC index dropped to $60.8 per tonne/6.08 cents per lb, compared to $62.50 per tonne/6.25 cents per lb a...Read More
Comex exchange copper prices recovered in morning trading in the United States on Friday May 3, after the April US jobs report showed strong data, raising spirits in the equity markets.The copper price for July settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose by 4.65 cents on Friday to $2.8260 per lb.Earlier in the morning, the jobs report showed that 263,000 Americans had...Read More
Benchmark alumina prices are now trading at their lowest in over a year due to lack of buying appetite and excess cargoes in the market for May and June. Fastmarkets' benchmark alumina fob Australia index was last assessed at $351.49 per tonne on May 2 - its lowest level since the index was published at $349.88 per tonne on March 1, 2018. "There are a lot of cargoes being offered in the market at...Read More