Prices for steel billet imported into Egypt fell in the week to Thursday May 27, largely due to a lack of demand, sources told Fastmarkets.Global billet prices have been decreasing recently and there was hardly any demand for imports into Egypt, they added.Fastmarkets' daily steel billet index, export, fob Black Sea, was $659 per tonne on May 27, down from $691 per tonne on May 20.Demand for rebar...Read More
Turkish rebar and wire rod export prices made a downward correction in the week to Thursday May 27, having risen steadily since the end of April, market participants told Fastmarkets this week.Turkish steelmakers lowered their rebar export offers to $750-780 per tonne fob on an actual-weight basis, down from last week's $780-790 per tonne. The downward movement followed a downturn in Asian steel p...Read More
Domestic long steel prices in Turkey fell for the first time since mid-April due to weakening scrap import values, market sources said on Thursday May 27.Turkish steel producers resumed their deep-sea scrap bookings after a brief period using US-origin cargo at a lower price.Fastmarkets' daily index for steel scrap, HMS 1&2 (80:20 mix), US origin, cfr Turkey was $508.22 per tonne on May...Read More
Turkish steel producers again stepped away from the deep-sea scrap market after a downturn in steel billet and finished steel prices, triggered by falling prices in China, market participants told Fastmarkets on Thursday May 27.Mills had only just returned to the market on Wednesday, when a Turkish steelmaker booked f 44,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (95:5) from the United States at $515 per tonne cfr.Tha...Read More
Iron ore prices went fell on Thursday May 27, due to limited demand in the seaborne market and at Chinese ports.Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $189.73 per tonne, down $3.14 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $190.90 per tonne, down $3.59 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $162.38 per tonne, down $2.64 per tonne65% Fe Brazil-origin fines, cf...Read More
Import prices for steel scrap in China weakened further on Thursday May 27 amid a continued lack of buying interest, sources told Fastmarkets.The continued price drop came despite the most-traded rebar and hot-rolled coil futures contracts on the Shanghai Futures Exchange inching up on May 27 after more than a week of consecutive losses.Fastmarkets' daily price assessment for steel scrap...Read More
Canada will seek to work with its allies and partners to develop supply chains that will help them to meet global climate goals, according to the associate deputy minister at the Department of Natural Resources Canada (NRCan).Shawn Tupper said that this will include building mineral value chains and downstream processing, products and technologies, and leveraging mining practices, to position Cana...Read More
Copper's price is trading at all-time highs - and now the countries where it is mined the most want a piece of the action.The London Metal Exchange's three-month copper contract recently hit an all-time high of $10,747 per tonne - industrial commodities have broadly rallied on the expectation that government investments in green energy schemes and infrastructure projects after the Covid-19 pandemi...Read More
Experts from the battery value chain shared their understanding and insights into lithium price evolution and the new lithium futures contract during a Fastmarkets' webinar on Tuesday May 25.CME Group in the United States launched a cash-settled lithium futures contract on May 3. The contract is settled against Fastmarkets' assessment of the lithium hydroxide monohydrate, 56.5% LiOH.H2O min, batte...Read More
Trade union members employed at BHP's operations center in Santiago de Chile were set to begin an indefinite strike on Thursday May 27, Fastmarkets has heard.Around 200 employees represented by the union were to stop working at BHP's Center of Integrated Operations, which manages the concentrates and cathode machinery at the company's Escondida and Spence copper mines.The strike was called after u...Read More
A combination of strong demand and tight supplies in the global silico-manganese market has revived Chinese exports, which have been largely dormant over the past decade, sources told Fastmarkets this week.As the world's largest silico-manganese producer, China was a significant supplier to buyers in Asia and Europe until the removal of an export rebate in 2005. And a 20% tariff introduced 2007 fu...Read More
Copper's price is trading at all-time highs - and now the countries where it is mined the most want a piece of the action.The London Metal Exchange's three-month copper contract recently hit an all-time high of $10,747 per tonne - industrial commodities have broadly rallied on the expectation that government investments in green energy schemes and infrastructure projects after the Covid-19 pandemi...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday May 27 that are worth another look.Energy majors Royal Dutch Shell, Exxon Mobil and Chevron received landmark rebukes - in court or from investors - on Wednesday May 26 in attempts to force the companies into...Read More
Four key takeaways from the 6th China International LiCoNi Summit in Changsha, China, on May 20-21, 2021.1. Weak nickel market sentiment now but long-term positive Sentiment remained weak among domestic market participants at the conference because they think both the mild hawkish stance evident in the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) minutes and the statement from China's State Council that...Read More
Rio Tinto is partnering with Swedish research and development firm Comptech AB to bring a new generation of aluminium alloys to the market for use in advanced technologies, such as electric vehicles (EV) and 5G antennas, the UK-listed mining company said.The company said the products are currently undergoing qualification with automakers in Europe, who are stepping up efforts to increase their sha...Read More
Turkish steel producers again stepped away from the deep-sea scrap market after a downturn in steel billet and finished steel prices, triggered by falling prices in China, market participants told Fastmarkets on Thursday May 27.Mills had only just returned to the market on Wednesday, when a Turkish steelmaker booked f 44,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (95:5) from the United States at $515 per tonne cfr.Tha...Read More
Import prices for steel scrap in China weakened further on Thursday May 27 amid a continued lack of buying interest, sources told Fastmarkets.The continued price drop came despite the most-traded rebar and hot-rolled coil futures contracts on the Shanghai Futures Exchange inching up on May 27 after more than a week of consecutive losses.Fastmarkets' daily price assessment for steel scrap...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange and Shanghai Futures Exchange were mixed during the morning of Thursday May 27, as were broader markets - are these pauses, or early signs of a stall?More US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) members seem to be getting off the fence about talking about tapering Chinese yuan continues to strengthen, is China using the yuan to reduce inflationary pr...Read More
Four key takeaways from the 6th China International LiCoNi Summit in Changsha, China, on May 20-21, 2021.1. Weak nickel market sentiment now but long-term positive Sentiment remained weak among domestic market participants at the conference because they think both the mild hawkish stance evident in the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) minutes and the statement from China's State Council that...Read More
Battery manufacturers in China have aggressively cut their orders for lithium cobalt oxide (LCO) cathode materials in the second quarter, with the move weighing on lithium and cobalt prices, market sources told Fastmarkets.LCO batteries are widely used in consumer electronics, including smart phones, laptops, and tablets among others.A leading electronics battery manufacturer in China will cut its...Read More