Vale will buy Brazilian privately-owned Ferrous Resources Ltd as part of its "bolt-on acquisitions" strategy, it said on Thursday December 6. The world's largest iron ore producer will buy the small miner for $550 million, the company said. Ferrous Resources operates iron ore mines close to Vale's own assets in the southeastern state of Minas Gerais, with sales volumes of 3 million tonnes in 2017...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices slipped on Thursday December 6, with futures and swaps markets weakening, while buyers remained cautious over big tonnages.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $66.59 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.79 per tonne.MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $65.86 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.79 per tonne.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $70.13 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $1.08 per tonn...Read More
Iranian export billet and slab prices continued to fall this week, in line with the global downtrend and with sanctions pushing suppliers to lower their offers to try and attact customers.Fastmarkets weekly price assessment for Iranian export billet price was $405-410 per tonne fob on Wednesday October 5, down by $10 per tonne week on...Read More
Import prices for steel billet in Southeast Asia were unchanged on Thursday December 6, with the uptick in domestic Chinese billet prices early this week failing to revive trading activity in the region.Fastmarkets' daily price assessment for billet imports into Southeast Asia was $460-470 per tonne cfr Manila on Thursday, unchanged from Wednesday.No bookings have been heard concluded since Monday...Read More
China's domestic and export prices for rebar fell further on Thursday December 6, with a pessimistic outlook for supply and demand emerging in the market.Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,880-3,920 yuan ($566-571) per tonne, down 20 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): 3,560-3,590 yuan per tonne, down 30-40 yuan per tonneRebar futures tumbled during the day, which weighed on spot prices. Buy...Read More
The European ferro-molybdenum market has climbed almost 2.5% in trading by the midweek pricing session on Wednesday December 5, tracking a previous increase in the oxide market, with alloy prices now back to a level last seen on September 14. The ferro-molybdenum, basis 65%, in-warehouse Rotterdam price has risen to $29.50-29.70 per kg, from $28.80-29 per kg on November 30. Around 65 tonnes o...Read More
China's ferrous futures mostly weakened during morning trading on Thursday December 6, with the exception of the coking coal contract, which inched up.Futures closing prices - morning session Shanghai Futures Exchange May rebar: 3,395 yuan ($495) per tonne, down 23 yuan per tonneMay hot-rolled coil: 3,319 yuan per tonne, down 4 yuan per tonneDalian Commodity Exchange May iron ore: 470.50 yuan per...Read More
Demand for flat steel in Turkey is expected to remain slow throughout December, and export demand was not strong because of seasonal reasons, but prices are not expected to fall because they did so in November, market participants told Fastmarkets on Thursday December 6.Local producers have filled their order books until late January, they said.The price falls in November resulted in part from wea...Read More
Vale will buy Brazilian privately-owned Ferrous Resources Ltd as part of its "bolt-on acquisitions" strategy, it said on Thursday December 6. The world's largest iron ore producer will buy the small miner for $550 million, the company said. Ferrous Resources operates iron ore mines close to Vale's own assets in the southeastern state of Minas Gerais, with sales volumes of 3 million tonnes in 2017...Read More
Iron 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 this week.Speaking at the company's investor day at the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday December 4, Poppinga said the decision made sense as the 65% Fe iron ore and pellet [pric...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were collectively lower at the close of trading on Thursday December 6, with downward pressure emerging across global equity indices in addition to a sharp downturn in oil futures, which tricked through to metals prices. Prompting the sell-off, escalating concerns over trade tensions between the United States and China continued to deter investors, a...Read More
Iranian export billet and slab prices continued to fall this week, in line with the global downtrend and with sanctions pushing suppliers to lower their offers to try and attact customers.Fastmarkets weekly price assessment for Iranian export billet price was $405-410 per tonne fob on Wednesday October 5, down by $10 per tonne week on...Read More
The Turkish deep-sea scrap import market was quiet on Thursday December 6, following a sharp price drop recorded the day before.A steel mill in the Marmara region on Wednesday booked a European cargo comprising 20,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (75:25), 12,500 tonnes of a mixture of plate and structural (P&S) and HMS 1, 5,000 tonnes of shredded and 2,500 tonnes...Read More
The European hot-rolled coil market has been under pressure from slow trading and prices are likely to reach the 'bottom' soon, sources told Fastmarkets this week.Demand has been low due to a combination of a seasonal slowdown and high stocks at European distributors. Interest in imported coil has been limited due to long lead times and uncertainty over the definitive decision in a...Read More
The latest news and price moves to start the Asian day on Friday December 7.Base metal prices on the London Metal Exchange were collectively lower at the close of trading on Thursday December 6, with downward pressure emerging across global equity indices in addition to a sharp downturn in oil futures, which trickled through to metals. Read more in our live futures.Here are how prices looked...Read More
The latest metal markets news and price moves to start the North American day on Thursday December 6.Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were lower across the board during morning trading, with downward pressure across the complex stimulated by broad strength in the dollar index, which continues to trade in positive territory after last week's G20 summit.The three-month nickel price ha...Read More
Good morning from Fastmarkets MB's offices in Asia as we bring you the latest news and pricing stories on Thursday December 6. Base metals prices, bar those for zinc, on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were broadly lower during Asian morning trading on Thursday, with lingering concerns surrounding the trade tensions between the United States and China causing prices to soften.Check Fastmarkets MB's...Read More
Lower lithium prices than a year ago have led to differing price expectations between producers and consumers of lithium compounds in their negotiations for 2019 supply contracts. In light of lower spot prices in China, lithium consumers are seeking to lock in lower contract prices for 2019 by referencing the Chinese spot market price in their deals. But lithium producers are trying to keep prices...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were collectively lower at the close of trading on Thursday December 6, with downward pressure emerging across global equity indices in addition to a sharp downturn in oil futures, which tricked through to metals prices. Prompting the sell-off, escalating concerns over trade tensions between the United States and China continued to deter investors, a...Read More
Comex copper prices sank to a multi-week low in the US morning on Thursday December 6 with the recent equity market downturn suppressing the entire base metals group. The copper price for March settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange tumbled 4.30 cents to $2.7310 per lb. Earlier, the contract touched an intraday low of $2.7130, the weakest point since November 14. US e...Read More