The Indian government's plans of hitting 300 million tonnes of steel capacity by 2030 sounds overambitious in the current scenario given that output only managed to reach the 101 million tonne mark in 2017 - indicating three-fold (Read More
After suffering for some seven years through to 2015, the world's steelmakers have had cause for cheer over the past couple of years. After some heavy losses and write-downs, they finally appear to have emerged from the wreckage of the global financial crisis. An economic upswing has taken root in most regions of the world, Chinese steel output and export growth has slowed noticeably, and steel pr...Read More
For a number of years problems at Ilva, the largest steelworks in Europe, have been casting shadow over the performance of the whole Italian steel industry. Will an acquisition of Ilva by a consortium led by ArcelorMittal, now in its final stage, be a game changer for the market?Following multiple reports of environmental and health problems caused by the Taranto plant, in 2013 Ilva was placed und...Read More
China ended steel production in all of the country's illegal induction furnaces by the end of June last year, it ha claimed.Most operators in China are primarily small private mills that use low-quality scrap to produce substandard rebar. This is mixed with grade III (HRB400) rebar and sold at a discount to construction contractors.For a long period, the government had neither a record of nor cont...Read More
China's month-on-month new electric vehicles (NEV) sales rebounded in August after month-on-month declines in June and July. The drop in sales between May and June was the first drop since September 2016, but Fastmarkets MB had expected Chinese NEV sales to dip temporarily after the June subsidy changes came into effect because consumers and NEV manufacturers would have to adjust to the new subsid...Read More
Iron ore prices fell sharply in the second half of November after climbing through October, with prices for higher-grade material pioneering the decline.Fastmarkets MB daily benchmark for 65% Fe fines dropped by 22% by Monday November 26 after peaking on October 29. The 62% Fe iron ore index declined by 16% over the period, as some Chinese steelmakers started to seek larger volumes of cheaper ores...Read More
The steel scrap sector in the United States still depends on exports to Turkey, a member of the Fastmarkets research team said during the ferrous session at the Bureau of International Recycling (BIR) conference in London.This dependence persists despite the changes in the international markets created by the US' imposition of its Section 232 tariffs on imports of steel products, metals analyst Le...Read More
Seaborne pig iron has become relatively competitive versus ferrous scrap over the past year in most regions, and China is no exception. As the first chart below illustrates, the gap between the MBR's proxy for imported pig iron price in China and the Metal Bulletin's Chinese domestic heavy melt scrap price assessment had shrunk by late 2017. The premium averaged $17 per tonne this year to date, co...Read More
The closure of some induction furnaces in China in 2016 followed by the government's crackdown on all unlicensed IFs in mid-2017 freed up some scrap volumes, albeit arguably of low-quality material. Chinese domestic scrap prices came under pressure from the increased supply, which prevented them from keeping pace with the rise in steel and other raw material markets in the fourth quarter of 2016;...Read More
Comex copper prices sank once again on Thursday morning in the United States, with persistent bearish overtones and short-covering hampering the red metal.The copper price for March settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange dipped 0.60 cents to $2.6485 per lb. "Although we acknowledge that market participants prefer to adopt a cautious stance toward copper for now,...Read More
Strategic & Precious Metals Processing (SPMP) expects the initial production of pure antimony metal to take place in the next week at its antimony-gold project in Oman, SPMP parent company Tri-Star Resources said on Thursday January 24. Tri-Star has a 40% equity interest in SPMP, which is constructing the antimony and gold processing facility in Sohar, Oman. The project was initially expected to c...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Thursday January 24 that are worth another look.An ad hoc coalition of more than 45 groups from various industries in the United States has called on President Donald Trump's administration to end the Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminium imports from Canada and Mexico.Chinese steelmakers' narrowing margins and improvemen...Read More
The uncertainty caused by the current geopolitical climate may only be temporary, but it could affect activity in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in metals and mining into 2019, according to a report by consultancy firm PwC.Geopolitical instability and trade tensions may have played a role in depressing the number of deals in 2018 compared with the previous two years, and the sector faces uncertain...Read More
Australian miner New Century Resources is delivering 14,000 tonnes of zinc concentrates on spot-market terms to Europe, the tailing reprocessing project operator said on Monday January 21.The parcel is now en route to Europe, after being sold to an existing offtake partner, according to a company statement.New Century Resources' project is the first of its kind to generate significant output from...Read More
A summary of MMG's production results for the year ended December 31, 2018. IN BRIEF: Ramp-up of Dugald River mine drove significantly-increased zinc and lead concentrate production. Las Bambas wall instability impeded mine access and...Read More
Kazakhstan-based Kaz Minerals plans to increase its copper production by developing the Baimskaya copper project in Siberia, having taken control of the asset in January 2019.The company announced its acquisition of Baimskaya at a cost of $900 million in August 2018, and finalized the acquisition this year.Kaz forecasts that, once production at the mine begins, it will average 250,000 tonnes per y...Read More
M2 Cobalt Corp and Jervois Mining Ltd are to merge in a deal that will complement the latter's ambitions in East Africa as part of its focus on the growing battery metals market. Upon completion of the deal, which has been approved by both boards, existing Jervois shareholders will own 77.9% of the new company while 22.1% will be owned by current M2 Cobalt shareholders. In late 2017, the company c...Read More
Turkish steel billet prices have increased slightly over the past week on an uptick in imported scrap values and reduced availability of billet in the CIS region, sources said on Thursday January 24.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for billet imports into Turkey was $410-420 per tonne cfr on Thursday, up from the $405-415 per tonne of last week.Suppliers in the Commonwealth of Independent Stat...Read More
Turkish domestic and export rebar prices have inched up this week, with mills in the country trying to increase their offers following higher scrap costs.Yet, demand was not supportive and no significant bookings have been heard over the past week, sources said on Thursday January 24.Turkish steel producers have raised their export offers to $445-460 per tonne fob on an actual weight basis but the...Read More
The domestic rebar price in Turkey has moved up slightly, in line with the increasing value of imported deep-sea scrap, while demand was very weak due to a seasonal slowdown in the country, sources said on Thursday January 24.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic rebar in Turkey was TRY2,820-2,850 ($531-537) per tonne ex-works on January 24, up from TRY2,800-2,830 per tonne last week."...Read More