Import prices for rebar in Singapore softened further over the past week with the supply of Chinese products remaining ample.Fastmarkets MB's assessment of import prices for rebar in Southeast Asia - which mainly looks at cargoes sold into Singapore on a theoretical weight basis - was $500 per tonne cfr for the week to Monday December 3, down $10-20 per tonne from $510-520 per tonne cfr a week ear...Read More
The Turkish steel producers have started another working week without any deep-sea bookings due to the uncertainty in the market and sluggish demand for finished steel goods, sources said on Monday December 3.A number of market participants reported various offers and bids at the beginning of the week, but no transactions were completed, Fastmarkets was told.Some sources said that offers from supp...Read More
The new 65% Fe iron ore derivatives launched by the Singapore Exchange (SGX) have registered 150,000 tonnes of cleared trades on their first day of trading, the exchange said on Monday December 3. Launched in response to calls for more efficient risk-management tools in the steelmaking raw materials market, and settled against the daily MB 65% Fe Iron Ore Index published by Fastmarkets MB, the SGX...Read More
Turkish domestic steel scrap prices have continued to weaken in line with the falling prices for steel and imported scrap over the past week, sources said on Monday December 3.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic auto bundle (DKP grade) ferrous scrap was TRY1,590-1,780 ($304-340) per tonne delivered on Monday, down from TRY1,650-1,850 per tonne on November 26.Steel producers and a maj...Read More
Buying activity in most of the export outlets for CIS billet remained quiet at the beginning of December, with customers still getting over the shock caused by the sharp drop in Chinese billet prices last week.Besides that, customers in Egypt, one of the major outlets for CIS billet, were cautious because of the possible introduction by the Middle Eastern country of safeguard measures against stee...Read More
Chinese rebar prices bounced back in a big way on Monday December 3 after a 90-day truce was agreed in the tit-for-tat trade war between China and the United States.Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,960-4,000 yuan ($569-575) per tonne, up 160-170 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): 3,720-3,750 yuan per tonne, up 200 yuan per tonneAn agreement between the leaders of the world's two largest e...Read More
The Chinese ferro-silicon market has added to recent price increases amid persistent demand from steel mills in the week ended Friday November 30, while in Europe prices are under pressure after reports of new deals, with long-term delivery negotiations in focus. China builds on price gains while steel mills buy for 2019 smelting schedules European market drops, awaits first-quarter settlements US...Read More
Ferro-chrome spot prices in China were unchanged in the week ended Friday November 30 after the drop in tender prices to December from November was smaller than expected. Chinese mills' ferro-chrome tender price falls by 50 yuan ($7) per tonne Chinese imported and domestic ferro-chrome spot prices stable Alloy prices into Japan and South Korea fall High-carbon ferro-chrome price into Europe unmove...Read More
The ammonium paratungstate (APT) market was subdued in the week ended Friday November 30 while the ferro-tungsten price in Europe nudged lower. APT prices in China and Europe stable amid slow trades Concentrates market quiet Ferro-tungsten price in Europe edges down; Chinese prices unchanged In Europe, Fastmarkets assessed the free market ammonium paratungstate price at $275-295 pe...Read More
Brazilian steelmakers are concerned that the domestic industry will struggle if President-elect Jair Bolsonaro reduces or does away with import tariffs when he takes office in January 2019, sources told Fastmarkets MB last week.Other market participants, however, do not believe any changes will be done abruptly or without corporate tax reforms. The new federal administration's future minister of e...Read More
Global crude steel production volumes continued to rise year on year in October 2018, according to statistics published by the World Steel Association (Worldsteel) on Friday November 23.World crude steel output totaled 156.6 million tonnes in October this year, compared with 148 million tonnes in the corresponding month of 2017. Asia continued to be the single largest steel-producing region, with...Read More
Swiss multinational investment bank, UBS Group, has applied for Category II membership on the London Metal Exchange, according to a note released by the exchange on Thursday November 15. The LME currently has 32 Category II members and the Swiss bank's London subsidiary, UBS Ltd, is already a member. Last month, Chinese broker Nanhua Futures similarly took steps...Read More
Export prices for flat steel products from the Commonwealth of Independent States continued to decrease in the week ended Monday December 3 under pressure from weak global demand.The rebound seen in the Chinese domestic hot-rolled coil (HRC) price on Monday may support the global market, however.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for CIS-origin exports of HRC was $460-475 per tonne fob Black Sea...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mostly higher at the close of trading on Monday December 3, with broadly positive market sentiment emerging from the weekend's summit in Argentina of the leaders of the G20 group of nations, while the United States and China agreed to limit further use of trade tariffs.The three-month tin price improved most over the afternoon. It made a signifi...Read More
Brazil's primary aluminium production continued to slow in October, according to local aluminium association Abal. The country's primary aluminium output was 50,500 tonnes during the month, 26.30% lower than the 68,500 tonnes in the same period last year. October's figures were the third-lowest monthly output in 2018 despite recording some growth compared with September, when production was 49,100...Read More
The Chinese ferro-silicon market has added to recent price increases amid persistent demand from steel mills in the week ended Friday November 30, while in Europe prices are under pressure after reports of new deals, with long-term delivery negotiations in focus. China builds on price gains while steel mills buy for 2019 smelting schedules European market drops, awaits first-quarter settlements US...Read More
The latest news and price moves to start the Asian day on Tuesday December 4.Base metal prices on the London Metal Exchange were higher at the close of trading on Monday December 3, with broadly positive market sentiment emerging from the weekend's G20 Summit in Argentina, while the United States and China agreed to limit further use of trade tariffs. Read more in our live futures report.Here are...Read More
The latest metal markets news and price moves to start the North American day on Monday December 3.Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were all higher across the board in morning trading, boosted by positive sentiment surrounding the cooling US-China trade dispute while high volumes indicate strengthening buying appetite.Here's how base metals prices looked at 11:48am London time:Read...Read More
Good morning from FastMarkets MB's offices in Asia as we bring you the latest news and pricing stories on Monday December 4. All base metals prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange moved higher during Asian morning trading on Monday December 3, benefiting from the positive sentiment after the agreement by Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump to find a solution to the trade wa...Read More
If Brexit - the departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union on March 29, 2019 - isn't on your radar, it should be. With the annual London Metal Exchange Week now in full swing, the exchange, its members and their customers need to have contingency plans in place if they are expecting to be affected in any way by Brexit. And as with anything political, an element of brinkmanship will na...Read More