U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures gained 26 points in pre-opening trade. Index futures were virtually unchanged following release of economic news at 8:30 AM EDT. Consensus for September Personal Income was an increase of 0.3% versus an upwardly revised gain of 0.4% in August. Actual was an increase of 0.2%. Consensus for September Personal Spending was an inc...Read More
An overview of the battery raw materials markets and their price moves from the past week.Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mixed at the close of trading on Friday October 26, with a continued downtrend in the three-month nickel price coming amid better-than-expected third-quarter GDP figures from the US.Reaching an intraday low of $11,810 per tonne on Friday afternoon, the three-month nickel price was trading at a 10-month low amid mounting pressure from a strong US...Read More
Brazilian copper producer Paranapanema normalized its production and sales volumes during the third quarter after a scheduled maintenance brought volumes down in the April-June period, the company's earnings report shows.Paranapanema produced 82,000 tonnes in total during July-September, up by 2.5% from 80,000 tonnes a year before. This volume was composed of 43,400 tonnes of cathodes, a 1.81% fal...Read More
An overview of the battery raw materials markets and their price moves from the past week.Read More
Key data for the pricing session in the week ending Friday October 26.China The domestic ferro-chrome spot market was stable from the past week but few deals were done. UG2 prices were stable, while the imported charge chrome index eased slightly. Chinese stainless steel mills lowered their tender prices for November delivery...Read More
An overview of the battery raw materials markets and their price moves from the past week.Read More
State-owned Finnish company, Terrafame, will boost investment in developing a battery chemical plant in Sotkamo, Finland, amid a record-high quarter for zinc and nickel production output, the mining company said in a release this week.The investment, said to be worth ?,?240 million ($273 million), has received principle funding of ?,?100 million from parent company Finnish Minerals Group, with add...Read More
A summary of Glencore's third-quarter production results for the three months ended September 30 (own-sourced output volume, year-on-year change):Copper - 366,900 tonnes, + 21% Increase reflects the restart/ramp-up of Katanga operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Katango restarted in December 2017. Own-source copper metal from Katanga increased by 10% quarter on quarter to 39,300 tonnes...Read More
An overview of the battery raw materials markets and their price moves from the past week.Read More
An overview of the minor metals markets in the week ending Friday October 26, and the reasons for any price moves.Read More
Ferrous scrap prices moved in differing directions in the various global markets over the week from Monday October 22 to Friday October 26, depending on their market fundamentals.Import prices in the key Turkish market were on a slight upward trend due to consistent demand, while prices in Asia dipped because there was sufficient supply and weak demand.Export prices on the West Coast of the United...Read More
Prices of several alloy scrap grades eased this week, albeit only marginally - a reflection of continued poor demand and a fall in nickel prices.Fastmarkets MB assessed UK domestic 18/8 scrap solids at ?840-880 ($1,080-1,132) per tonne delivered on Friday October 26, down by ?10-20 from the previous assessment.European import prices for 18/8 scrap solid also slipped, dipping by ?,?10 per tonne a...Read More
The price of shredded ferrous scrap imported into India edged up this week ahead of an expected a slowdown for the religious festival of Diwali, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday October 26.Fastmarkets' weekly index for containerized imports of shredded scrap into India inched up to $355.67 per tonne cfr Nhava Sheva on October 26, from $354.42 per tonne cfr Nhava Sheva on October 19.Deals this we...Read More
Comex copper prices dipped Friday morning in the US with a stronger dollar providing a serious headwind against the base metals complex.The copper price for December settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 2.50 cents to $2.7295 per lb. Broad strength in the dollar, which is trading at its highest level since July, is proving the most prominent headwind to bas...Read More
A summary of Glencore's third-quarter production results for the three months ended September 30 (own-sourced output volume, year-on-year change):Copper - 366,900 tonnes, + 21% Increase reflects the restart/ramp-up of Katanga operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Katango restarted in December 2017. Own-source copper metal from Katanga increased by 10% quarter on quarter to 39,300 tonnes...Read More
The continuing use of trade tariffs applied to global movements of steel and aluminium products is expected to open up opportunities for strategic investors in metals and mining which are looking to consolidate and stay competitive, according to a report by global consultancy firm PwC.PwC noted that foreign businesses are starting to target inbound mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity in the Un...Read More
An overview of the battery raw materials markets and their price moves from the past week.Read More
China's domestic spot battery-grade lithium carbonate prices have started to move up this week after continuous price decreases since November 2017 due to reduced production from Qinghai, stronger industrial-grade lithium carbonate prices and lower stocks of lithium compounds.China's battery-grade lithium hydroxide prices held steady on quiet demand, while prices for the rest of the world went dow...Read More
Usiminas, Brazil's largest flat steel producer, focused on the domestic market during the third quarter and achieved its highest steel sales volume since the fourth quarter of 2015, its earnings report shows.Steel shipments rose by 8.96% to 1.11 million tonnes from 1.02 million tonnes a year before, the company reported on Friday October 26. The steelmaker sold 992,000 tonnes to Brazilian customer...Read More