The market for flat steel exports from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) has been stable over the past week, although insiders' moods have gone in different directions, sources told Fastmarkets on Monday March 4.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for CIS-origin exports of hot-rolled coil (HRC) was $520-530 per tonne fob Black Sea on March 4, unchanged week on week."Buyers in Turkey re...Read More
Turkey's flat steel export volumes rose by 55.37% year-on-year in January, according to the latest data from the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK). The main reason for the increase was that the local demand was weak in the country in the last quarter of 2018, when orders to be...Read More
Turkey's import volumes of flat steel decreased by 27.06% year on year in January 2019, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK).The country imported 497,487 tonnes of flat steel in January of this year, compared with 682,069 tonnes in January 2018, TUIK statistics showed.Demand for flat steel in Turkey has been weak since August 2018, when United States president Donald Trump doubled...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Monday March 4 that are worth another look.The Indonesia Commodities & Derivatives Exchange (ICDX) has ended the suspension of key smelter inspector PT Surveyor Indonesia in connection with the launch of its new physical tin contract, which is set to transfer tin exports to bonded warehouses for the first time in the exchange's his...Read More
UK steel industry body UK Steel and steelmaker British Steel have both welcomed a recent government announcement that the UK will formally adopt many of the existing EU trade protection measures for the steel sector once the country leaves the trading bloc.The UK government's secretary of state for international trade, Liam Fox, announced in the House of Commons on February 25 that the UK will ado...Read More
European long-steel buyers resisted higher offers throughout February while demand levels continue to dawdle behind higher raw material prices that pushed some producers to raise offers across the long steel slate.Prices in March will depend on any shift in the balance of power between the high producer offers and the sluggish end-user demand. Producers were unable to affect any of Fastmarkets' Eu...Read More
Turkish steel mills continued to book deep-sea scrap at a slow pace at the end of last week and prices remained largely steady at the start of this week, sources said on Monday March 4.A steel mill in the Iskenderun region booked a European cargo, comprising 17,500 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (75:25) and 17,500 tonnes of bonus at an average price of $314.50 per tonne cfr on late Friday or Saturday.The cargo...Read More
Turkish domestic scrap prices have remained largely stable over the past week on moderate demand, sources said on Monday March 4.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment on Monday for domestic auto bundle (DKP-grade) scrap in Turkey was TRY1,650-1,820 ($307-338) per tonne delivered, narrowing upward from the TRY1,630-1,820 per tonne of last week.This...Read More
Physical iron ore trading was lackluster on Monday March 4 amid declines in the futures markets.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $87.69 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.23 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $87.09 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.23 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $89.88 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.22 per tonne. MB 58% Fe Premium Index: $76.11 per tonne cfr Q...Read More
Buying activity in the CIS export billet market was rather limited at the beginning of March amid a mismatch between producers' offers and customers' bids.CIS producers were insisting on offering at $450-460 per tonne fob Black Sea, customers in North Africa and Turkey were looking for $440 per tonne fob Black Sea and below, while customers in Southeast Asia and the Middle East were ready to pay $...Read More
Import prices for steel slab in Southeast Asia and East Asia were flat during the week to Monday March 4, with the market remaining in a stalemate due to the large bid-offer gap.Fastmarkets' weekly import price assessment for slab imports to Southeast Asia and East Asia was $460-480 per tonne cfr on Monday, unchanged from a week earlier.No transactions were reported, with offers remaining at high...Read More
China's rebar prices maintained their upward momentum in both the domestic and export markets on Monday March 4 amid expectations of a strengthening in demand. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,800-3,860 yuan ($566-575) per tonne, up 20-30 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): 3,820-3,860 yuan per tonne, up 30-40 yuan per tonneWarmer temperatures in northern China and favorable weather in the...Read More
The Chinese domestic ferro-silicon price has fallen for the second week in a row amid weaker fundamentals of supply and demand in the week to Friday March 1, while the European market braced for renewed weakness ahead of longer-term delivery settlements. China price falls to annual low Market at level last seen in April 2018 Europe's first second-quarter tender seen below spot prices US spot deman...Read More
Low-grade manganese ore prices rose in China last week in active trading amid strong demand, while global manganese alloys prices were largely stable - barring China, where prices weakened on muted buying. Low-grade ore prices gain up to 22 cents per dmtuAlloy prices keep sliding in ChinaIndian silica-manganese prices edge upEuropean alloy prices stabilize Low-grade manganese ore prices jumped by...Read More
Hunan Chuangda, one of China's largest ferro-tungsten exporters, has halted its tungsten operations and is switching focus to vanadium, a source at the company told Fastmarkets."It is our normal strategy to change priority of production from tungsten to vanadium [and] we have no further plans to produce ferro-tungsten after the Chinese New Year holiday lull. We only have around 200 tonnes of ferro...Read More
Turkey's flat steel export volumes rose by 55.37% year-on-year in January, according to the latest data from the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK). The main reason for the increase was that the local demand was weak in the country in the last quarter of 2018, when orders to be...Read More
Turkey's import volumes of flat steel decreased by 27.06% year on year in January 2019, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK).The country imported 497,487 tonnes of flat steel in January of this year, compared with 682,069 tonnes in January 2018, TUIK statistics showed.Demand for flat steel in Turkey has been weak since August 2018, when United States president Donald Trump doubled...Read More
Vale's chief executive officer Fabio Schvartsman has temporarily stepped down from his position in the wake of a tailings dam collapse at one of its iron ore mines in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais in January. The miner, on Saturday March 2, named its executive director of base metals, Eduardo de Salles Bartolomeo, as its interim CEO.Three other top executives - including Gerd Peter Poppinga,...Read More
The Chinese domestic ferro-silicon price has fallen for the second week in a row amid weaker fundamentals of supply and demand in the week to Friday March 1, while the European market braced for renewed weakness ahead of longer-term delivery settlements. China price falls to annual low Market at level last seen in April 2018 Europe's first second-quarter tender seen below spot prices US spot deman...Read More
The market for flat steel exports from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) has been stable over the past week, although insiders' moods have gone in different directions, sources told Fastmarkets on Monday March 4.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for CIS-origin exports of hot-rolled coil (HRC) was $520-530 per tonne fob Black Sea on March 4, unchanged week on week."Buyers in Turkey re...Read More