The market for Turkish lumpy chrome ore showed signs of strong recovery late last week and, although the market appears to have stalled since then, the uptrend looks set to resume.Upward momentum started to return to the market after several weeks in which there was little reported trade.Fastmarkets MB's price assessment of Turkish lumpy chrome ore, cfr China, gained $8 to reach $230-240 per...Read More
Key data from the Wednesday October 24 pricing session in Europe.Key drivers The downward trend in the European ferro-titanium market in October has been extended in the latest assessment, with high-volume sales to Europe from Russia dragging down prices. Sources said there is supplier resistance at $5 per kg, which is proving something of a psychological level for the market. But there is en...Read More
The shutdown of Brazilian alumina refinery Alunorte for a few days in October could bring its production volume down by 20,000-30,000 tonnes in the fourth quarter, according to Eivind Kallevik, chief financial officer of the unit's owner, Norsk Hydro.Hydro produced 821,000 tonnes of alumina during the third quarter of 2018. If output goes down by as much as 30,000 tonnes, that would mean a reducti...Read More
Norsk Hydro's third-quarter earnings were up from a year ago due to higher all-in aluminium and alumina prices, but a continued production curtailment at the company's Alunorte alumina refinery in Brazil continues to have a negative impact.The company's underlying earnings before financial items and tax (Ebit) increased to Nkr2,676 million ($323 million) in the third quarter of this year, up 9% fr...Read More
An overview of the minor metals markets and the reasons for any price moves.Read More
Key data from the Wednesday October 24 pricing session in Europe.Key drivers The downward trend in the European ferro-titanium market in October has been extended in the latest assessment, with high-volume sales to Europe from Russia dragging down prices. Sources said there is supplier resistance at $5 per kg, which is proving something of a psychological level for the market. But there is en...Read More
Key data from the Wednesday October 24 pricing session in Europe.Key drivers The downward trend in the European ferro-titanium market in October has been extended in the latest assessment, with high-volume sales to Europe from Russia dragging down prices. Sources said there is supplier resistance at $5 per kg, which is proving something of a psychological level for the market. But there is en...Read More
A Turkish steel producer booked a US deep-sea cargo earlier this week, bringing prices down on Wednesday October 24, sources told Fastmarkets.A steel mill in the Marmara region booked a US cargo, comprising 33,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $331 per tonne, 5,000 tonnes of shredded at $336 per tonne and 2,000 tonnes of bonus grade at $341 per tonne cfr.This cargo was sold...Read More
South Korea continued to purchase heavy melting scrap this week on stable demand from a major steel mill.A 20,000-tonne cargo of HMS 1&2 (80:20) quality from New Zealand was transacted at $354 per tonne cfr South Korea this week, market sources said.Demand from South Korea has been regular in recent weeks, with South Korean steel mills entering the spot market again after bellwether Turkish import...Read More
Comex copper prices bounced-back Wednesday morning in the US amid falling inventories and signs of strong demand.The copper price for December settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange inched up 0.30 cents to $2.7610 per lb.LME copper stocks continue to trend lower because tighter spreads have attract limited inflows - stocks total 152,225 tonnes, down...Read More
Antofagasta's copper production jumped by 15.4% in the July-September quarter, the company said on Wednesday October 24. The Chilean miner's copper production was 188,300 tonnes during July-September quarter, up by 15.4% from the April-June quarter. Copper output in the first nine months totaled 505,500 tonnes, down 4% from the corresponding period in 2017, mainly due to lower...Read More
The underlying theme remains unchanged with the base metals prices continuing to oscillate within sideways trends, although some prices, such as tin and zinc, are starting to edge higher. Sentiment in China has improved after Chinese officials have taken steps to ease credit tightness in the private sector by helping companies raise money in the capital markets.After a down day on Tuesday October...Read More
The Chilean national economic development agency, Corfo, which owns the lithium-rich Salar de Atacama, has opened a dispute with United States-based lithium producer Albemarle to seek an interpretation by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) of a contract between the two.The contract between Corfo and Albemarle was signed in April 2017. It says that Albemarle would have to sell as much as 2...Read More
Mobarakeh Steel, the largest steelmaker in the Middle East-North Africa region, does not expect the new United States sanctions to affect its production, financial activities and exports.On October 16, Mobarakeh Steel - along with a number of other Iranian companies - was added to the list of sanctioned entities by the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)."Mobarakeh Steel Company... is used...Read More
China's domestic and export prices for hot-rolled coil fell on Wednesday October 24, with expectations of a further decline making a few mills more eager to sell their products abroad.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 4,170-4,190 yuan ($601-604) per tonne, down 20 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tianjin): 4,080-4,100 yuan per tonne, widening downward 10 yuan per tonneSellers in Shanghai tested buyer...Read More
Major Chinese steel mills raised their crude steel output slightly in early October.China Iron & Steel Association (Cisa) members produced crude steel at an average rate of 1.9874 million tonnes per day during the first 10 days of the month, up 0.13% from 1.9848 millon tonnes per day during the last 10...Read More
The latest news and price moves to start the Asian day on Thursday October 25.Base metal prices on the London Metal Exchange were collectively lower at the close of trading on Wednesday October 24, pressured by continued strength in the United States' dollar index while the three-month aluminium price broke below $2,000 per tonne for the first time since April. Read more in our live futu...Read More
The United States Department of Commerce has found that Mexican steel producer Deacero has been circumventing an existing anti-dumping duty on wire rod, according to a preliminary ruling released late last week.The company's exports of carbon and certain alloy steel wire rod, with diameters lower than 4.75mm, were found to be circumventing the existing tariff, according to the preliminary decision...Read More
Prices for hollow steel sections in the domestic European market have remained stable this week but some market participants were preparing to adjust their prices downward after a decline in feedstock prices, Fastmarkets heard on Wednesday October 24.Fastmarkets' domestic price assessment for commodity-size, grade-S235 square hollow sections made in Northern Europe remained stable week on week at...Read More
A Turkish steel producer booked a US deep-sea cargo earlier this week, bringing prices down on Wednesday October 24, sources told Fastmarkets.A steel mill in the Marmara region booked a US cargo, comprising 33,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $331 per tonne, 5,000 tonnes of shredded at $336 per tonne and 2,000 tonnes of bonus grade at $341 per tonne cfr.This cargo was sold...Read More