Joint acquisition partners ArcelorMittal and Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp (NSSMC) are looking to India as a growth market after ArcelorMittal won the bid to buy insolvent Essar Steel. "India is one of the most promising markets in the world with significant growth potential in the medium- and long-term and where domestically-produced steel products have a superior position," NSSMC said in it...Read More
An overview of the battery raw materials markets and their price moves from the past week.Read More
Pig iron exporters in Brazil kept their prices low during week ended Friday October 26, despite the national currency becoming stronger.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for pig iron exports from the south-eastern Minas Gerais region on October 26 was stable at $350 per tonne fob.One cargo from southern Brazil was...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
Buyers of pig iron in the United States have rejected high offers from the Commonwealth of Independent States because of the uncertainty in the market for hot-rolled coil, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday October 26.Fastmarkets' price assessment for US imports of pig iron narrowed downward to $375-390 per tonne cfr on October 26, from $375-395 per tonne a week before."The US flat steel producers...Read More
The latest metal markets news and price moves to start the North American day on Friday October 26. Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were lower across the board during morning trading on Friday October 26, with a marked downturn in global equity markets prompting further risk-aversion while a continued surge in the dollar index kept prices subdued.The three-month nickel price deprec...Read More
Good morning from Fastmarkets MB's offices in Asia as we bring you the latest news and pricing stories on Friday October 26.Base metal prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mostly down during Asian morning trading on Friday after a firm dollar continued to put downward pressure on the complex. Copper and lead were the only metals to register gains - albeit marginal ones - in the early sessi...Read More
Metal Bulletin reviews the major stories that have affected the steel market during the week ended October 26.Raw Materials The Singapore Exchange's high-grade iron ore derivative contract will promote efficiency and transparency in price discovery and risk management related to this segment of the steelmaking raw material, market participants say.Global miner Vale has room to replace sales of low...Read More
Fastmarkets rounds up some of the key news and price moves across the global metals markets this week. Base metalsVale, the world's largest producer of iron ore and nickel, believes that its base metals division will be completely different by 2020, senior executives said on Thursday October 25 during a third-quarter earnings call.The continuing use of trade tariffs applied to global movements of...Read More
China's hot-rolled coil producers are looking to export more of the product amid expectations that domestic prices will continue to fall in the near term, key flat steel traders told Fastmarkets MB.HRC prices in eastern China were at 4,170-4,190 yuan ($601-604) per tonne on Thursday October 25, down from 4,280-4,300 yuan per tonne a month earlier.Export prices also fell, with the MB fob China HRC...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
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
The seaborne coking coal spot market was largely stable on Friday October 26 following a flurry of transactions earlier this week.Market sources said that production at the Middlemount mine in Queensland, Australia has been disrupted, and an offer for a December-loading cargo involving a tier-two product from the mine was heard to have been withdrawn. "The issue is being looked into. However, the...Read More
Indian domestic prices for secondary steel billet fell by at least 400 rupees ($5) per tonne this week, in line with a bigger dip in prices for finished products such as rebar, Fastmarkets heard on Friday October 26.The price for secondary billet, mainly produced in induction furnaces, was 33,600-33,800 rupees ($459-462) per tonne ex-mill on Friday. This was down by 400 rupees per tonne from last...Read More
Brazilian slab export prices went up on Friday October 26, amid a stronger focus on trade to the United States and with no deals being made to other destinations.Fastmarkets' assessment of the weekly price of Brazilian slab exports reached $505-515 per tonne fob on Friday, up from $500-510 per tonne fob in the previous week.At least three different cargoes were sold to the US market for December s...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
Fastmarkets rounds up some of the key news and price moves across the global metals markets this week. Base metalsVale, the world's largest producer of iron ore and nickel, believes that its base metals division will be completely different by 2020, senior executives said on Thursday October 25 during a third-quarter earnings call.The continuing use of trade tariffs applied to global movements of...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
Base metal inventories on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) were mostly lower on Friday October 26 from a week earlier, with lead stocks almost halving since last Friday.Deliverable lead stocks at SHFE-approved warehouses dropped by 4,942 tonnes or 44.6% week on week to 6,139 tonnes.This week Zhejiang Tainchuan saw the most stock leaving the sheds - 1,892 tonnes of the metal were delivered out....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