European prices for mesh-quality wire rod stayed flat across the continent on Wednesday February 27, with slow demand keeping prices steady and negating any effect of potential supply pressure from the European Commission's safeguard import quotas.Fastmarkets MB's weekly domestic price assessments for mesh-quality wire rod for both Northern and Southern Europe stayed at ?,?530-550 ($603-625)...Read More
Prices for hollow steel sections in the domestic European market were unchanged week on week on Wednesday February 27, but increases in hot rolled coil (HRC) prices will soon have a knock-on effect, market sources told Fastmarkets.For the second time in less than a month, ArcelorMittal has announced a ?,?30-per-tonne ($34) price increase for its European coil steel products and while this has not...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
Physical iron ore prices continued to correct on Wednesday February 27, with buyers and sellers both cautious about taking any action.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $83.54 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.21 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $82.94 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.21 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $85.80 per tonne cfr Qingdao, up $0.31 per tonne. MB 58% Fe P...Read More
Fastmarkets looks at key Asian ferrous scrap consuming countries Vietnam, Taiwan and South Korea, and which exporters increased their shipments to these destinations in 2018. Vietnam increased ferrous scrap imports by 20.7% in January-November 2018 to 5.12 million tonnes, up 878,425 tonnes, or 20.7%, from 4.24 million tonnes in the same period in 2017. Fastmarkets MB's import price asse...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices rebounded slightly on Wednesday February 27 with buyers picking up the pace of their procurement. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,750-3,800 yuan ($560-567) per tonne, up 10-20 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): 3,750-3,790 yuan per tonne, up 20 yuan per tonneAn improvement in weather conditions in eastern China has allowed more construction projects to resta...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices retreated on Tuesday February 26 after supply pressures led sellers to destock.Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,740-3,780 yuan ($558-564) per tonne, down 10-20 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): 3,730-3,770 yuan per tonne, widened downward by 10 yuan per tonneSelling interest among stockists picked up due to an increase in inventory levels, which led to them...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
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 the run up to April.The city of Ulanqab in China's autonomous region of Inner Mongolia is expected to experience a s...Read More
Prices for hollow steel sections in the domestic European market were unchanged week on week on Wednesday February 27, but increases in hot rolled coil (HRC) prices will soon have a knock-on effect, market sources told Fastmarkets.For the second time in less than a month, ArcelorMittal has announced a ?,?30-per-tonne ($34) price increase for its European coil steel products and while this has not...Read More
State-owned long steel producer Emirates Steel is expecting a slowdown in the Middle East construction sector that will persist throughout 2019, chief executive officer Saeed Al-Remeithi said on Tuesday February 26.Al-Remeithi was speaking as the company released partial production results for 2018. He said that he expected the slowdown in the regional construction industry this year because of in...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
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
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
European prices for mesh-quality wire rod stayed flat across the continent on Wednesday February 27, with slow demand keeping prices steady and negating any effect of potential supply pressure from the European Commission's safeguard import quotas.Fastmarkets MB's weekly domestic price assessments for mesh-quality wire rod for both Northern and Southern Europe stayed at ?,?530-550 ($603-625)...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
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 the run up to April.The city of Ulanqab in China's autonomous region of Inner Mongolia is expected to experience a s...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
Tin premiums were unchanged across the board on Tuesday February 26, with a climbing outright tin price capping spot business in Europe and the United States, while Chinese participants are yet to feel the downstream effects of this week's suspension of key tin producer Yinman Mining. European demand holds up despite Indonesian export delays US participants concerned over climbing tin price China...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