While nickel briquette started to become a viable alternative as a precursor of nickel sulfate for Chinese battery raw materials producers in early 2021, their enthusiasm for the product appears to have waned in recent weeks, resulting in a less active spot market.Previously, a sharp decrease in nickel briquette inventory levels at London Metal Exchange warehouses had Chinese market participants w...Read More
Domestic hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices in China extended their gains on Monday August 23, buoyed by constrained production but subdued by rising inventories and persistent concerns over demand.DomesticSteel hot-rolled coil domestic, ex-whs Eastern China (Shanghai) was 5,660-5,700 yuan ($870-876) per tonne, up by 30-40 yuan per tonne from Friday August 20.The most-traded HRC contract on the Sha...Read More
Key data from Fastmarkets' pricing session on Monday August 23.Key drivers The spot cobalt international metal price for both alloy and standard grades widened downward on lower offers from sellers in a quiet market, with limited buyers seeking spot units and...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices moved up on Monday August 23 on strengthening demand in many parts of the country, though heavy rain continued to keep demand in a few provinces subdued. DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 5,130-5,170 yuan ($788-794) per tonne, up by 50-60 yuan per tonneConstruction activity has increased in large parts of China, such as the eastern and northern region, on clear weathe...Read More
Nickel and lead posted price increases of almost 2% in morning trading on the London Metal Exchange on Monday August 23, ahead of the Federal Reserve's Jackson Hole summit which starts on Thursday.Three-month nickel traded at $18,805 per tonne at 9am, up from Friday's $18,463-per-tonne closing price. The metal lost 5.4% of its value last week, with the spread of the Delta variant of Covid-19 denti...Read More
China imported 88,218 tonnes of ferrous scrap in July, a 16% increase from June, according to the latest Chinese customs data.Of the total, 66,096 tonnes - or 74.92% - originated in Japan.South Korea remained China's second-largest scrap supplier in July, accounting for 14,464 tonnes (16.4%) of imports.Taiwan (3,590 tonnes; 4.07%) and Hong Kong (1,214 tonnes; 1.38%) were other significant sources...Read More
Spot prices for steel rebar imports into Singapore dipped in the week to Monday August 23 amid pressure on traders to offload cargoes after iron ore prices collapsed last week.Traders were offering Indian rebar at $735-740 per tonne cfr Singapore on a theoretical weight basis, down by $5 per tonne from the previous week."The Hong Kong import market has also been receiving offers at these levels,"...Read More
The Cobalt alloy grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lbtrade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparencyinto the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies.Fastmarkets assessed Cobalt alloy grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb...Read More
The Cobalt standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb trade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparencyinto the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies.Fastmarkets assessed Cobalt standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam,...Read More
Russian steelmaker Metalloinvest and another, unnamed, non-European steel company, are in discussions about acquiring Hungarian flat steel producer Dunaferr, market sources told Fastmarkets this week.The Hungarian steelmaker's owners have been in negotiations with both parties and a decision is imminent, sources said, because Dunaferr is about to go through the liquidation process. Metalloinv...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday August 23 that are worth another look.Increasing costs for long-term storage at the Chinese port of Tiajnin have added to the financial burdens facing alloy smelters and trading houses this year.Tianyuan Manganese Industry Group (TMI), said to be the world's largest producer of manganese flake, has not halted production, it told Fas...Read More
A summary of China's battery raw materials exports for July 2021, according to the latest Chinese customs data released last Friday August 20.In brief?EUR?Lithium hydroxide exports fell month on month due to a shortage in China amid lithium feedstock supply constraints coupled with strong demand from the...Read More
Eight of the nine Category 1 members of the London Metal Exchange have indicated their support for continuing to trade official lunchtime prices in the open-outcry ring.Does this mean that one company does not support ring trading? And could one of the exchange's members be preparing to leave the trading floor?The exchange revealed on Monday August 9 that it had majority support for the ring, in a...Read More
Turkish domestic scrap prices have continued to weaken over the past week in line with falling imported scrap values, market participants told Fastmarkets on Monday August 23.Turkish steel mills continued to book deep-sea scrap cargoes with prices continuing to weaken throughout the week to August 23.Fastmarkets' daily index for steel scrap, HMS 1&2 (80:20 mix), US origin, cfr Turkey was...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Northern Europe and Italy were broadly unchanged during the week to Friday August 20 amid low trading activity during the summer holiday slowdown.Fastmarkets calculated its daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe at ?,?1,142.50 ($1,336.45) per tonne on Friday, down by ?,?0.63 per tonne day on day from ?,?1,143.13 per tonne. The index...Read More
The provincial government of Liaoning in northeastern China has approved a merger between Anshan Iron & Steel (Angang) and Benxi Iron & Steel (Bengang), according to a notice released by the latter's listed arm, Bengang Plate, on Thursday August 19.The owner of Bengang - Liaoning's State-owned Assets Supervision & Administration Commission - will transfer a 51% controlling stake in the steelmaker...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 5 points in pre-opening trade.Bank of Montreal advanced $0.81 to $129.53 after reporting higher than consensus fiscal third quarter earnings.Bank of Nova Scotia gained $0.30 to $80.53 after reporting higher than consensus fiscal third quarter earnings. Mosaic advanced $0.55 to $31.81 after announcing a $1 billion share...Read More
Cancellation of 44,000 tonnes of copper in London Metal Exchange warehouses kept the metal's nearby price spreads in backwardation on Monday August 23, while sentiment for LME prices turned positive after a week of selling.Some 44,475 tonnes of copper were booked for removal from the Busan, Singapore and Kaohsiung warehouses on Monday, reducing the amount of metal on-warrant to 197,750 tonnes, the...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Friday August 20 that are worth another look.Brazilian steelmaker Gerdau will increase its interest in Mexican joint venture Gerdau Corsa from 70% to 75% by merging three of its units in the country and selling a stake to Grupo C??rdova, the company said...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Friday August 20 that are worth another look.Brazilian steelmaker Gerdau will increase its interest in Mexican joint venture Gerdau Corsa from 70% to 75% by merging three of its units in the country and selling a stake to Grupo C??rdova, the company said...Read More