A drop in China's manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) to 49.2 in February, from 49.5 in January, has set a weaker tone across markets with base metals traded on the London Metal Exchange mostly lower and down by an average of 0.3% in the morning of Thursday February 28. Copper and zinc prices led on the downside with losses of 0.7%, with copper recently quoted at $6,473 per tonne after...Read More
Monthly European alloy surcharges for stainless steel products will increase sharply for March, largely because of resurgent nickel prices. This week's announcements by European stainless mills will mark the first time surcharges have not decreased for seven months. Alloy surcharges are designed to account for the non-ferrous component of various stainless steel grades, with the pri...Read More
Any impact to Chinese nickel pig iron (NPI) production from an expected power shortage in Inner Mongolia during April and May is likely to be limited, according to market participants.The city of Ulanqab in China's autonomous region of Inner Mongolia is expected to experience a severe power shortage in April and May, market sources told Fastmarkets, citing an unconfirmed announcement issued by cit...Read More
Import prices for stainless steel in East Asia were mixed over the past week amid thin trading, with those for the cold-rolled product rising, while hot-rolled coil ones experienced some weakness.Fastmarkets MB's weekly import price assessment for 304 stainless 2mm trimmed cold-rolled coil in East Asia was $2,030-2,100 per tonne cif on Wednesday February 27, up $10-40 per tonne from a week earlier...Read More
Domestic stainless steel prices in China edged up further over the past week amid market participants' optimistic outlook.Fastmarkets MB's domestic price assessment for benchmark 304 stainless cold-rolled coil in the major market of Wuxi was 14,700-15,100 yuan ($2,197-2,257) per tonne including value-added tax for the week ended Wednesday February 27, widening upward by 100 yuan per tonne from 14,...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures gained 16 points in pre-opening trade. Index futures are responding to a 1.8% gain by the Shanghai Composite Index in anticipation of a trade deal between China and the U.S. Index futures were virtually unchanged following release of economic news at 8:30 AM EST. Consensus for January Personal Income was an increase of 0.3% ve...Read More
Arbitrage losses have put downward pressure on the Shanghai cif full-plate nickel premium, but the other Chinese nickel premiums were unchanged week on week, as were those in the United States and Europe. Chinese cif full-plate nickel premiums edged down on the basis of widened arbitrage losses European premiums remained flat across the board despite positive macroeconomic sentiment US briquettes...Read More
Lead's three-month price on the London Metal Exchange climbed at the close of trading on Wednesday February 27, finishing above its nearby $2,100 per tonne resistance level amid a continued draw on the LME's dwindling inventory.Total LME lead stocks were now at their lowest level in a decade, with the amount of deliverable material now down to just 61,125 tonnes. More than 40% of on-warrant materi...Read More
Zinc ingot premiums fell to their lowest levels in eight and a half years in Antwerp and Rotterdam on Tuesday February 26 due to market sellers offloading units in reaction to tightening London Metal Exchange future price spreads. European zinc premiums drop sharply Shanghai zinc market flat South and East Asia lead markets unchanged with little buying European zinc premiums drop to 8...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday February 27 that are worth another look.Following reports of a potential power shortage in one of China's major ferro-alloy production hubs in the second quarter of this year, market participants have downplayed any immediate impact on ferro-alloy prices in the country, saying they intend to adopt a wait-and-see stance in...Read More
The London Metal Exchange has received its first application ahead of its introduction of the Registered Intermediating Brokers (RIBs) membership category, according to a note to members on Wednesday February 27.Freight brokerage firm Simpson Spence & Young (SSY) confirmed to Fastmarkets that the firm's membership is now being considered by the LME and circulated to existing members for approval....Read More
Significant copper concentrate stocks from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are now sitting in bonded warehouses in Zambia, awaiting an unlikely roll-back of the import duty enforced by the Zambian government, Fastmarkets has learned. A 5% import duty has been applied on Zambian copper concentrates imports since the start of 2019, causing major smelters including Vedanta's KCM and Chinese-ow...Read More
An overview of the minor metals markets and the reasons for any price moves.Read More
Key data from the Wednesday February 27 pricing session in Europe.Key drivers - Persistent supply worries involving a major supplier prompted short-covering and is expected to propel prices higher in the weeks to come. Ferro-titanium producers and traders have been getting more buying interest from Europe and the United States. With one producer typically offering at least 350 tonnes per month to...Read More
A weaker secondary aluminium market in Europe and a lack of domestic demand drove the UK secondary aluminium market down by 2.9% on Wednesday February 27. Fastmarkets assessed the price of LM24 pressure diecasting ingot on a delivered consumer works basis at ?1,380-1,440 ($1,839.18-1919.15) per tonne on Wednesday, with deals concluded toward the lower end of the range. This is the lowest pri...Read More
The Turkish deep-sea scrap import market has been quiet so far this week due to continuing limited demand for finished steel products, which is making Turkish producers hold back from buying raw materials, sources said on Wednesday February 27.The scrap import market in Turkey went quiet at the end of last week after a Baltic Sea cargo transaction, which sent prices down by $20 per tonne week on w...Read More
Key data from the Wednesday February 27 pricing session in Europe.Key drivers - Persistent supply worries involving a major supplier prompted short-covering and is expected to propel prices higher in the weeks to come. Ferro-titanium producers and traders have been getting more buying interest from Europe and the United States. With one producer typically offering at least 350 tonnes per month to...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) in Southern Europe have moved up slightly over the past week, while import prices rises have stopped, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday February 27.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic HRC in Southern Europe was ?,?485-510 ($551-580) per tonne ex-works on February 27, compared with ?,?480-510 per tonne ex-works a week earlier.An Italian in...Read More
China's export hot-rolled coil prices moved closer to domestic values on Wednesday February 27, with buyers willing to take higher prices in the expectation that global demand will rebound soon.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,800-3,830 yuan ($567-572) per tonne, unchangedNorthern China (Tianjin): 3,750-3,760 yuan per tonne, narrowing at both endsDomestic prices today were mainly stab...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday February 27 that are worth another look.Following reports of a potential power shortage in one of China's major ferro-alloy production hubs in the second quarter of this year, market participants have downplayed any immediate impact on ferro-alloy prices in the country, saying they intend to adopt a wait-and-see stance in...Read More