Consumption of ferrous scrap in the United Kingdom will continue to increase over the coming years amid an expansion in the UK operations of international metals group Liberty House, Fastmarkets MB's research team believes. UK scrap demand in 2018 is on course to rise for the first time in four years after Liberty restarted a second electric arc furnace (EAF) at its site in Rotherham, northern Eng...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mixed at the close of trading on Friday February 1, with most futures prices ending the week higher amid continued weakness in the US dollar index and LME stock drawdowns. Despite consolidating 0.5% lower over the afternoon, copper's three-month price remains well supported above $6,100 per tonne. While on-warrant material is now above 100,000 t...Read More
The London Metal Exchange has outlined the terms in which it will conduct its electronic price discovery trial of nickel, introducing a trade-at-settlement (TAS) functionality and setting out a scheduled start date of March 18, the exchange said in a notice to members on Friday February 1. The electronic trial will last for three months and will end on June 18, 2019. Closing prices for nickel will...Read More
The price of copper on the Comex exchange in the United States edged lower in the final session of trading on Friday February 1, with the market awaiting further news on US-China trade talks.The copper price for March settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange dipped by 0.20 cents to $2.7825 per lb.Price action in the red metal has been positive throughout the week, on lo...Read More
Courts in Brazil have ruled that up to 12.6 billion Reais ($3.44 billion) of Vale's assets and resources will be frozen after the rupture of a tailings dam at Vale's C??rrego do Feij??o iron ore mine, the miner stated on Friday February 1.The federal prosecutors' office, state prosecutors and the state government of Minas Gerais, where Feij??o is located made most of the complaints. Additionally,...Read More
Light iron steel scrap prices in the United Kingdom increased for the second consecutive week on tighter availability because collection rates have dropped off amid freezing temperatures in the week to Friday February 1.The move to higher prices is only the second increase since the start of November 2018, and puts the market at a level last seen on December 14. Major shredders need a high, steady...Read More
Copper concentrate treatment and refining charges (TC/RCs) dropped further at the end of January, with smelters in China breaking away from the quarterly procurement price floor amid an outlook for a tightening in supply later this year.Fastmarkets' copper concentrate Asia-Pacific TC import index fell to $79 per tonne/7.9 cents per lb on Thursday January 31, the lowest since mid-June, when th...Read More
The London Metal Exchange has outlined the terms in which it will conduct its electronic price discovery trial of nickel, introducing a trade-at-settlement (TAS) functionality and setting out a scheduled start date of March 18, the exchange said in a notice to members on Friday February 1. The electronic trial will last for three months and will end on June 18, 2019. Closing prices for nickel will...Read More
The price of copper on the Comex exchange in the United States edged lower in the final session of trading on Friday February 1, with the market awaiting further news on US-China trade talks.The copper price for March settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange dipped by 0.20 cents to $2.7825 per lb.Price action in the red metal has been positive throughout the week, on lo...Read More
First Quantum Minerals has resumed copper production at its Las Cruces mill in Spain after a land slippage last week, by processing lower-grade stockpiled ore.The stockpiled ore was expected to provide feed for the next several months while the company, which is based in Toronto, Canada, obtains the necessary regulatory approval to begin mining at Phase 6, an area that was not affected by the land...Read More
Chilean copper producer Codelco has reached an agreement with the workers' unions representing its Chuquicamata and Gabriela Mistral divisions, the miner said on Thursday January 31. The deal in both cases will be in effect for three years. Chuquicamata currently has the third-largest refined copper output in the company and Gabriela Mistral is in sixth place. Wage raises will be in the 1-1.2% ran...Read More
Copper and zinc stocks at Shanghai Futures Exchange-approved warehouses were up week on week on Friday February 1 despite thin trading ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday, while other base metals stocks were little changed.Deliverable copper stocks at SHFE-approved warehouses increased by 19.21% or 23,000 tonnes to 142,727 tonnes in the week to Friday. The volume in the Shanghai district increased...Read More
Cold-rolled coil and coated sheet prices in the United States were steady this past week because market participants had yet to feel the full effect of $40-per-ton hikes announced from Monday January 28. Producers - including Nucor Corp, ArcelorMittal USA, and U.S. Steel Corp - raised prices for CRC and coated products by a minimum of $40 per ton earlier this past week, but buyers weren'...Read More
The export price for Brazilian slab was stable this past week due to weak trading activity, although market participants believe prices could take an upturn soon.Fastmarkets' weekly assessment for Brazilian export slab was $410-460 per tonne fob on Friday February 1, unchanged from the previous week.In the United States, bids were heard at around $460 per tonne fob but most...Read More
Ukrainian steelmaker Metinvest increased its output of sellable semi-finished products by 10% year on year to 3.03 million tonnes in 2018, supported by favorable market conditions, the company said in a report released on Thursday January 31.Sellable semi-finished products output increased following stable raw materials supplies in 2018 as well as comparatively higher sales prices year on year.Hot...Read More
The growth in apparent steel consumption in the EU will slow to only 0.5% in 2019, followed by a 1.2% rise in 2020, European steel association Eurofer said on Thursday January 31.Europe's apparent steel consumption was forecast to reach 164 million tonnes in 2019 and 166 million tonnes in 2020.These numbers are "less than one-third of the compound annual growth rate of apparent steel consumption o...Read More
The levels of the quotas set as definitive measures by the European Commission (EC) will not stop the rise in the region's import volumes, European steel association Eurofer said on Friday February 1.The EC will impose definitive safeguard measures from February 2 on a list of imported steel products, in the form of tariff rates and a range of quotas that are partly annual and country-specific and...Read More
Domestic prices for rebar in Poland have been stable over the past week, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday February 1.Fastmarkets' price assessment for domestic 12mm B500B-grade rebar in Poland was steady at 2,170-2,240 zloty ($583-601) per tonne ex-works on February 1.The steelmakers, however, were expected to raise their offers because of expected growth in scrap costs and the effects of the Eu...Read More
Steel coil prices in Turkey increased again this week because of the high cost of scrap alongside other global price increases, with more increases expected, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday February 1.Hot-rolled coil (HRC) stocks are low in the country because buying was weak for a long time when prices were falling.Fastmarkets' daily index for Northern Europe-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) scrap - a r...Read More
Indian mills are likely to increase their domestic prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) in February sales by about 1,000 rupees ($14) per tonne because of rising international HRC prices, particularly in China, Fastmarkets heard on Friday February 1.Officials from at least two mills confirmed the likelihood of a price rise. Indian mills were likely to issue new price lists next week, the officials sai...Read More