The latest news and price moves to start the Asian day on Thursday November 1.Base metal prices on the London Metal Exchange ended mostly lower on Wednesday October 31, pressured by a fresh 2018 high in the United States' dollar index. Read more in our live futures report.Here are how prices looked at the close of trading:Ternium chief executive officer M??ximo Vedoya expects steel slab...Read More
The latest metal markets news and price moves to start the North American day on Wednesday October 31.Base metals on the London Metal Exchange consolidated lower during morning trading on Wednesday October 31, with downward pressure emerging from broad corrections in key indices such as the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average, while dollar strength continues to hamper investment.Here...Read More
Good morning from Fastmarkets' offices in Asia, bringing the latest news and pricing stories on Wednesday October 31.Base metals prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mainly lower during Asian morning trading, with risk-off sentiment, combined with the possible escalation of US-China trade tension and a...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange ended mostly lower Wednesday October 31, pressured by a fresh 2018 high in the US dollar index.The three-month nickel price was hardest hit, falling 2.5% over the afternoon to an intraday low of $11,500 per tonne. Both three-month copper and zinc fell below nearby support levels - copper fell below $6,000 per tonne for the first time since September...Read More
Arbitrage for copper, aluminium, zinc and nickel imported into China on Wednesday October 31* Copper -$103.74 (-724.61 yuan) Aluminium -$436.45 (-3,048.53 yuan) Zinc -$47.26 (-330.08 yuan) Nickel $586.71 (4,098.08 yuan) *Fastmarkets calculates the physical arbitrage for import into China daily by using SHFE front-month and LME three-month prices at 3pm...Read More
Prices for iron ore fines weakened on Wednesday October 31 in a cautious market, while lump premiums traded higher.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $75.71 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $1 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $74.74 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $1 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $80.13 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.04 per tonne. MB 58% Fe Premium Index: $67.42 pe...Read More
The tin premium in Europe accelerated to a 21-month high on concerns surrounding Indonesian tin supply, while premiums in the United States and in Asia were immobile on sufficient supply. European premiums at 21-month high US contracts hint at climbing premiums Asia premiums steady on abundant stocks Indonesian supply crunch lifts European premiums In Europe, the premium for 99.9%...Read More
Market participants believe that domestic prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) in Northern Europe have 'reached bottom,' sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday October 31.Prices in southern and central Europe remained under pressure because of slow trading, they added.Northern EuropeFastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic HRC in Northern Europe was stable over the week at ?,?550-565 ($625-642...Read More
The latest news and price moves to start the Asian day on Thursday November 1.Base metal prices on the London Metal Exchange ended mostly lower on Wednesday October 31, pressured by a fresh 2018 high in the United States' dollar index. Read more in our live futures report.Here are how prices looked at the close of trading:Ternium chief executive officer M??ximo Vedoya expects steel slab...Read More
Spot copper concentrate treatment and refining charges (TCs/RCs) remained almost unchanged and at high levels toward the end of October, with a rapidly widening backwardation reducing the market liquidity.Fastmarkets' assessment of the TC/RC index dipped by $1.60 per tonne/0.16 cents per lb to $87.40 per tonne/8.74 cents per lb on October 31. The previous assessment of $89.00 per tonne/8.90 cents...Read More
Comex copper prices recovered from a mid-September low in early morning trading on Wednesday in the United States, with a stronger dollar and modest Chinese growth preventing a major rebound.The copper price for December settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange inched up 0.05 cents to $2.6645 per lb. Overnight, China's October PMI for the manufacturing industry was reco...Read More
China's lead production is estimated to moderately decrease by 2020 due to the stringent environmental regulations, a spokesperson of the China Non-ferrous Industry Association (CNIA) told delegates at the 21st China International Lead and Zinc Conference on October 31.Peng Tao, the general secretary of CNIA, forecast China's lead production to retreat to 4.65 million tonnes in two years' time, sl...Read More
Xiana Mining will acquire Glencore's Minera Altos De Punitaqui copper mine in Peru for $25 million, after sealing a financing package with Swiss trading firm Bluequest. Vancouver-headquartered Xiana agreed to buy the mine after signing terms in May, when London Metal Exchange three-month copper prices rose above $7,000 per tonne. But a combination of trade-war fears and diminishing mine supply ris...Read More
Latin American steelmaker Ternium, based in Luxembourg, said it believes it can take back market share held by imports in Mexico, chief executive officer M??ximo Vedoya told analysts on Wednesday October 31. The company is expanding a plant there."Mexico is a more competitive market than the United States to produce steel and we believe we can do that, taking market share back from imports," the e...Read More
Slab prices are due to recover at any time, with production stoppages expected and an inflationary trend in the prices of raw materials used to make steel, the chief executive officer of Ternium, M??ximo Vedoya, told analysts today.Ternium has produced slab that is sold to third parties in Brazil, since buying Companhia Sider??rgica do Atl??ntico (CSA), from Thyssenkrupp. The mill, which has 5 mil...Read More
European prices for mesh-quality wire rod were flat across the Northern and Southern parts of the continent on Wednesday October 31, with few buyers seriously enquiring for deliveries. Fastmarkets' weekly domestic price assessments for mesh-quality wire rod in both Southern and Northern Europe were ?,?535-560 ($608-636) per tonne delivered on Wednesday. Both assessments were unchanged over the pre...Read More
The price for rebar produced and delivered in Southern Europe fell slightly on Wednesday October 31, with some suppliers accepting lower bids to make sales but most only offering higher prices.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic rebar in Southern Europe fell to ?,?510-535 ($579-608) per tonne delivered on Wednesday, from ?,?520-545 per tonne last week.Producers have been raising thei...Read More
Turkey's flat steel exports more than doubled year on year in September, up by 103.67%, with total exports in the year to the end of September up by morre than a quarter (27.88%), according to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK). The increase in exports in September was due to the strong demand especially from Europe, market participants although the amount available for exports was boos...Read More
Key data from the Wednesday October 31 pricing session in Europe.Key driversTrades and assessments indicate the European ferro-titanium market continued the downtrend that began on September 12, when the market was assessed at $5.80-6.05 per kg. Ample supply of material, as well as traders looking to sell-off inventories before year-end were cited...Read More
The following Fastmarkets noble alloys and ores prices changed on Wednesday October 31:Noble alloysMolybdenum Europe drummed molybdic oxide, $/lb: $12.00-12.15 per lb from $12.00-12.20Ferro-molybdenum basis 65% min, in-warehouse Rotterdam, $/kg Mo: $28.80-29.30 per kg from...Read More