Iron ore prices dropped close to $74 per tonne cfr China on Tuesday January 23 amid weakening steel billet and futures markets. Metal Bulletin's 62% Fe Iron Ore Index Today: $74.29 per tonne cfr Qingdao Daily change: down by $2.32 per tonne. Month-to-date average: $76.50 per tonne Metal Bulletin's 58% Fe Premium Index Today: $60.73 per tonne cfr Qingdao Daily change:...Read More
Sentiment in the seaborne coking coal spot market remained downbeat on Tuesday January 23, with lower offers failing to pique any interest among buyers. "Since there's very little interest, sellers will have to give larger discounts in order to seal the deals," a trading source said. But market participants reported that coking coal was fetching attractive prices at Tangshan's Jingtang port, which...Read More
Most buyers of flat steel in the United Arab Emirates and in Saudi Arabia preferred to delay their purchasing this week because end-user demand was not strong and they expected discounts, sources told Metal Bulletin on Tuesday January 23.UAEHot-rolled coil (HRC) was offered at $600-605 per tonne cfr from China, and a buyer was bidding $580 per tonne cfr.India offered the product at $605-610 per to...Read More
Metal Bulletin Research topped the base metals leaderboard in the Apex fourth-quarter 2017 contest, with an accuracy rating of 99.35%. Click on the image below to download the full report. Bunk Muscat's Ajit S Mauskar was second in the base metals table with an accuracy rating of 98.88%, Casper Burgering of ABN Amro was third with 98.66%. SP Angel's John Meyer and Sergey Raevskiy were fourth with...Read More
The sharp increase in aluminium premiums in the United States - in addition to the potential import tariff there - is putting the Brazilian market under upward pressure, but weak demand has kept spot premiums in check until now.The US Midwest delivered premium hit its highest level since May 2015 this week and has risen by 16.4% thus far in January, to 10.5-11.5 cents per pound ($231.50-$253.50 pe...Read More
A series of put options bought at bearish strike prices served as an indication of potential copper deliveries onto the LME, market sources said after more than 36,000 tonnes of the metal hit LME sheds on Tuesday January 23.LME stocks surged by 17% when updated warehouse stock data showed several large deliveries on the exchange, notably 24,625 in Busan. In addition, the 28% increase in on-warrant...Read More
Chrome ore and charge chrome import prices rose in China on Friday January 19 amid tight supply after mills failed to secure sufficient alloy supply for their steel-making needs, while domestic prices rose on New Year stockpiling. Ore and alloy prices continued to propel each other in ChinaFurther price strength predicted amid new round of stockpiling before Lunar New YearJapanese, South Korean p...Read More
Global ferro-vanadium markets experienced sharp gains once again this past week, with supply concerns continuing to support prices....Read More
The international trade committee of the European Parliament has now endorsed the political agreement on the modernization of the EU's trade defense instruments, the European Commission (EC) said on Tuesday January 23.The agreement was reached between the EC, the European Council and the European Parliament on December 5 last year.The changes to the EU's anti-dumping and anti-subsidy regulations w...Read More
(Repeats without change to text. The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters)* LME Volumes long term: * LME Volumes by contract: * CME copper positioning: By Andy HomeLONDON, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Trading volumes on the London Metal Exchange (LME) increased by a marginal 0.5 percent last year. Not exactly the most exciting headline in the world of commodities trading...Read More
(Kitco News) - Even though gold is still trading above $1,330 an ounce, the metal is looking to consolidate in the near-term while the precious market is waiting for a new catalyst, according to the latest report by TD Securities.“Gold took a breather after several consecutive weeks of strong performance, as its run toward its 2017 highs ran out of steam,” said Bart Melek, head of glob...Read More
(Adds detail on proposal, comment, background)By David LawderWASHINGTON, Jan 22 (Reuters) - A trade group representing U.S. auto parts makers on Monday urged the Trump administration to adopt NAFTA automotive rules that cover research, engineering, design and software development work as part of North American regional value content goals.The proposal from the Motor and Equipment Manufacturers As...Read More
By Tom PolansekCHICAGO, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Archer Daniels Midland Co's proposed takeover of Bunge Ltd could signal a change in the company's strategy on oilseeds, giving the top U.S. grain merchant a much bigger capacity to crush soy just months after ADM's chief executive said the firm would cut spending on the sector.The potential strategic change comes as the world's biggest agricultural merch...Read More
On Friday I began the daily opening letter by saying …Whether the politicians come to some kind of accord in regards to funding the government or they let time lapse and effectually shut down the government is not the real issue.I looked at the two real issues that encompass our current dilemma. First is the fact that politicians have become professionals at using this dilemma to insert the...Read More
(Kitco News) - Gold is looking strong this year, with the potential to hit $1,425, global trading director at Kitco Metals Peter Hug said, adding that an interesting pattern has developed between the U.S. Federal Reserve and gold prices.“If we look at the patterns that started with the first Fed rate increase in 2015: gold moved up about $150, then came back. In December 2016, when the Fed r...Read More
(Kitco News) - While gold could do reasonably well in 2018, one famed analyst is recommending that investors shouldn’t be focused on just one precious metal.On the sidelines of the Vancouver Resource Investment Conference, Brent Cook, creator of Exploration Insights, told Kitco News’ Daniela Cambone that along with gold and silver he sees opportunities in copper, zinc and lithium.&ldq...Read More
(Kitco News) - Gold and silver prices were ending the U.S. day session slightly lower Monday. Some chart consolidation and mild profit taking from the shorter-term futures traders were featured amid a lack of major, markets-moving news to start the trading week. February Comex gold was last down $0.70 an ounce at $1,332.50. March Comex silver was last down $0.026 at $17.01 an ounce.While the U.S....Read More
Global billet prices fell in the week to Friday January 19 as a result of weak demand and a lack of market activity.In Asia, Chinese mills lowered their offers to try to increase export sales amid weak seasonal domestic demand, but buyers continued to avoid China-origin cargoes. Sentiment was mixed in the Middle East, CIS and North African regions amid poor demand and a quiet market.ChinaDomestic...Read More
Metal Bulletin rounds up some of the key news and price moves across the global metal markets this week.Base metals BHP revealed a strong set of results this week, with copper and zinc output up. US aluminium company Alcoa attributed a loss for the fourth quarter of 2017 to the closure of some operations and higher costs.The primary aluminium market was in a deficit of 1.57 million tonnes for...Read More
Metal Bulletin rounds up some of the key news and price moves across the global metal markets this week.Base metals BHP revealed a strong set of results this week, with copper and zinc output up. US aluminium company Alcoa attributed a loss for the fourth quarter of 2017 to the closure of some operations and higher costs.The primary aluminium market was in a deficit of 1.57 million tonnes for...Read More