Fastmarkets MB reviews the major stories that have affected the steel market during the week ended Friday December 7.Raw MaterialsIron ore producer Vale will use a 65% Fe iron ore index to price its pellets next year, moving away from using a 62% Fe iron ore index as the base price for such cargoes, executive director Peter Poppinga said.The world's largest iron ore miner also hailed the launch of...Read More
Fastmarkets rounds up some of the key news and price moves across the global metals markets this week.Base metalsEuropean lead producer Recylex has opened talks with the debtors of its Weser Metall division after leveraged investments at the smelter there failed to result in expected production gains.Refining charges (RC) for blister copper imported into China dropped for the fifth consecutive mon...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mostly higher at the close of trading on Friday December 7, supported by an uptick in equity indices while a softer US dollar index helped most three-month prices reverse Thursday's losses.Despite low volumes in LME trading, with aluminium's 11,723 lots topping the complex, strong afternoon trading resulted in intraday highs for aluminium,...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices were rangebound on Friday December 7 with low-grade material trading more actively than high grades.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $66.51 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.08 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $65.78 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.08 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $70.32 per tonne cfr Qingdao, up $0.19 per tonne. MB 58% Fe Premium In...Read More
The lull in the seaborne coking coal market was broken on Friday December 7, with two transactions taking place during the day. A premium mid-vol hard coking coal changed hands at $220 per tonne fob Australia while a similar cargo in the same category traded at $206 per tonne cfr China, sources told Fastmarkets. Both cargoes are loading in January.Premium hard coking coal cargoes for Jan...Read More
An overview of the minor metals markets and the reasons for any price moves.Read More
Key data from the pricing sessions in Asia, Europe and the United States for the week ending Friday December 7.China The domestic ferro-chrome spot price slid after some sellers lowered prices to book sales and generate cash before year-end, but buying interest from China's domestic stainless steel mills was thin. The imported charge chrome market was quiet. Some sellers had just compl...Read More
The United States Treasury must maintain its sanctions on companies associated with Oleg Deripaska until he relinquishes control of both EN+ and Rusal and receives no benefit from them, a senior US senator said. Robert Menendez, a member of the Democratic Party and the senior US senator from New Jersey, said in a letter to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin that efforts to remove sanctions without...Read More
Fastmarkets rounds up some of the key news and price moves across the global metals markets this week.Base metalsEuropean lead producer Recylex has opened talks with the debtors of its Weser Metall division after leveraged investments at the smelter there failed to result in expected production gains.Refining charges (RC) for blister copper imported into China dropped for the fifth consecutive mon...Read More
An overview of the battery raw materials markets and their price moves from the past week.Read More
Refining charges (RC) for blister copper imported into China dropped for the fifth consecutive month amid uncertainty over overseas supply and lower spot interest during annual negotiations.November's RC for 98-99% blister copper stood at $160-180 per tonne, with deals and offers reported within the range, Fastmarkets assessed. This compares with $170-185 per tonne a month earlier. Lackluster spot...Read More
The latest metal markets news and price moves to start the North American day on Friday December 7. Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mostly higher during morning trading, with copper topping complex gains amid a weaker dollar and resurgent trade tensions between the United States and China. Climbing just under 2% over the morning, copper...Read More
European lead producer Recylex has opened talks with the debtors of its Weser Metall division after leveraged investments at the smelter there failed to result in expected production gains. "The group anticipates that its German perimeter will not be able to reach its financial targets at December 31, 2018," the company said on Wednesday December 5. Weser-Metall GmBH, a wholly-owned German divisio...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mostly higher during morning trading on Friday December 7, with copper topping complex gain amid a weaker dollar and resurgent trade tensions between the United States and China. Climbing just under 2% over the morning, copper futures made an approach back toward $6,200 per tonne after a sharp sell-off on Thursday afternoon resulted in the metal...Read More
Fastmarkets MB reviews the major stories that have affected the steel market during the week ended Friday December 7.Raw MaterialsIron ore producer Vale will use a 65% Fe iron ore index to price its pellets next year, moving away from using a 62% Fe iron ore index as the base price for such cargoes, executive director Peter Poppinga said.The world's largest iron ore miner also hailed the launch of...Read More
The Brazilian slab export price fell further over the past week amid an ongoing downtrend in the global markets, while the price range remained wide depending on product destination.Fastmarkets assessed the Brazilian slab export price at $430-485 per tonne fob on December 7, down from $435-495 per tonne on November 30. The high end of the range is at its lowest level since December 29, 2017.Shipme...Read More
Brazilian domestic flat steel prices decreased during November, due to steelmakers granting some discounts to distributors in an effort to regain market share while import prices dropped, sources told Fastmarkets MB.Fastmarkets assessed the price for Brazil domestic hot-rolled coil at 2,600-2,700 Reais ($669-695) per tonne ex-works on December 7, lower than 2,850-2,900 Reais per tonne on November...Read More
Indian steel mills have cut domestic hot rolled coil prices for December sales by about 2,000 rupees ($28) per tonne to discourage imports following a sharp fall in international HRC prices. Fastmarkets' price assessment for Indian domestic HRC was 44,000-44,500 rupees per tonne ex-mill on Friday December 7, a reduction of 2,000 rupees per tonne from last week's 46,000-46,500...Read More
Prices for light iron scrap in the United Kingdom have held this week, but there are mounting pressures expected to drag down the market next week, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday December 7. The light iron market is under pressure amid indications of a likely ?20 ($25.50) per tonne drop in domestic delivery settlements to UK consumers for December shipments. The UK light iron market may fall...Read More
The latest bids, offers and deals in the global markets for hot-rolled coil, cold-rolled coil, hot-dipped galvanized coil, pre-painted galvanized iron, steel plate, steel sheet and other flat steel products. Latest transactions: HRC, CRC, HDG, PPGI Hot-rolled coil Turkey, domestic, hot-rolled coil, offered at $530 per tonne ex-works, late December-early January production. Turkey, domestic, hot-ro...Read More