Steel rebar prices in Poland moved up over the past week, supported by solid end-user demand and limited supply, Fastmarkets heard on Friday May 7.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, exw Poland, was 2,970-3,020 zloty ($781-794) per tonne on Friday, up by 50-70 zloty per tonne from 2,900-2,970 zloty per tonne last week.The assessment reflected deals, of...Read More
Pig iron import prices in the United States increased during the week to Friday May 7, following the uptrend in the global market.Fastmarkets' price assessment for pig iron, import, cfr Gulf of Mexico, US, was $620-635 per tonne on Friday, up from $585-595 per tonne the previous week.A cargo of Brazil-origin pig iron with 0.12% phosphorus content was bought at about $630-635 per tonne cfr for Augu...Read More
Prices for inter-merchant light iron scrap in the UK increased over the week ended Friday May 7, extending a general rally since late March, sources have told Fastmarkets.The market was likely to move higher, they added, given strong business conditions for European scrap exports into Turkey and the Indian subcontinent.UK monthly deliveries into domestic consumers in May were likely to be settled...Read More
Pig iron export prices from Brazil increased further on new sales in the week to Friday May 7, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' price assessment for pig iron, export, fob port of Vitoria/Rio, Brazil, was $575-590 per tonne on Friday, up from $545-560 per tonne the previous week.Two 30,000-35,000 tonnes cargoes of pig iron, with phosphorous content 0.15%, were sold from southern Brazil for...Read More
Prices in the CIS export billet market continued to rise in the second half of the week as customers from Turkey and China accepted higher levels in fresh deals.There was a revival in interest in imported billet in Turkey after the recent uptick in imported scrap costs.Fastmarkets' daily index for steel scrap, HMS 1&2 (80:20 mix), North Europe origin, cfr Turkey, was calculated at $488.83 per tonn...Read More
The Chinese import market for steel billet continued its rapid climb over the past seven days, with healthy demand being supported by soaring steel prices in the country.Chinese steel prices have spiked again this week, with hot-rolled coil prices setting domestic records and rebar prices leaping closer to 2008's all-time highest level.At the heart of the latest rise in rebar prices have been expe...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices maintained their upward momentum on Friday May 7, supported by strong demand, and ending the week with a rise of 240-250 yuan per tonne in the east and further growth in the north.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): steel reinforcing bar (rebar) domestic, ex-whs Eastern China, 5,420-5,450 yuan ($837-842) per tonne, up by 40-50 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing) week...Read More
The price of stainless steel flat products in Europe surged this week with some sources attributing this to China's cancellation of an export tax rebate, Fastmarkets heard on Friday May 7.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for stainless steel cold-rolled sheet, 2mm grade 304, transaction domestic, delivered North Europe, was ?,?3,000-3,050 ($3,611-3,672) per tonne, up by ?,?200 per tonne week on...Read More
An overview of the specialty steel raw materials markets in Europe and their latest price moves.Charlotte Radford, Cristina Belda...Read More
Prices for steel hollow sections in Europe moved up further on Wednesday May 5, with high feedstock costs and a lack of material choking the market, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel sections (medium), domestic, delivered Northern Europe, was ?,?1,120-1,190 per tonne ($1,347-1,4301) on May 5, up from ?,?1,070-1,120 per tonne on April 28."The Italians are having probl...Read More
Brazil's vehicle production recovered in April from the same month of 2020 when plants had to close due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the country's automaker association, Anfavea, saidBut output declined from March, it said on Friday May 7.Domestic vehicle production totaled 190,907 units last month, a huge rebound from 1,847 units in April 2020. Compared with the 200,340 units produced in March this...Read More
European steel association Eurofer believes that apparent steel consumption in the EU will increase by 11.7% year-on-year in 2021, it said on Thursday May 6.The association also forecast a more moderate rise of 4.9% year-on-year in 2022, to return "above 2017 levels thanks to continued improvement in demand from steel-using sectors."As a result, EU apparent steel consumption was expected to reach...Read More
China's new tax regime for ferrous raw materials and steel exports will kick off a new era for the steel sector, one in which demand and supply will become more balanced and the country cuts its dependency on iron ore at a faster pace. Chinese authorities announced last week that, from May 1, import duties for metallics and semi-finished steel would be removed and that export duties for raw materi...Read More
German steel companies Thyssenkrupp Steel and H? 1/4 ttenwerke Krupp Mannesmann (HKM) and the Port of Rotterdam Authority are to jointly investigate setting up international supply chains for hydrogen. Thyssenkrupp Steel and HKM will require large and increasing quantities of hydrogen to produce steel without coal as part of their transformation paths towards climate-neutral steelmaking. Both comp...Read More
As competition in the global steel markets remains fierce, Fastmarkets provides an update on the new, progressing and closed trade cases from around the world in April 2021.The case list below includes only updates. For other continuing cases this year, see the updates for January, February and...Read More
Trafigura is in talks with Cliveden Trading to acquire copper purchase and sale contracts from the Zug-based trading house, sources with knowledge of the matter told Fastmarkets.Talks were held between the two companies this week, with Trafigura potentially taking on a portion of Cliveden's copper book, subject to conditions, two sources who declined to be named because the discussions were confid...Read More
High primary aluminium prices and premiums in Europe prevented market participants there from achieving a higher low-carbon aluminium differential throughout April, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday May 7.Fastmarkets assessed the aluminium low-carbon differential value-added product (VAP), Europe at $10-15 per tonne Friday May 7, flat compared to the last assessment on April 1.Offers as high as $...Read More
Pig iron import prices in the United States increased during the week to Friday May 7, following the uptrend in the global market.Fastmarkets' price assessment for pig iron, import, cfr Gulf of Mexico, US, was $620-635 per tonne on Friday, up from $585-595 per tonne the previous week.A cargo of Brazil-origin pig iron with 0.12% phosphorus content was bought at about $630-635 per tonne cfr for Augu...Read More
Prices for inter-merchant light iron scrap in the UK increased over the week ended Friday May 7, extending a general rally since late March, sources have told Fastmarkets.The market was likely to move higher, they added, given strong business conditions for European scrap exports into Turkey and the Indian subcontinent.UK monthly deliveries into domestic consumers in May were likely to be settled...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday May 6 that are worth another look.Recent changes in Chinese tax policy have resulted in significant rises in the prices for steel billet and finished long steel products from the CIS and...Read More