Gold has big year in 2020 and outlook for this year robust. Learn about monetary expansion and gold future prices.Read More
The gold futures price reached US$1,767/ounce this week before retreating, which was the second time it has surpassed US$1,760 in the past two months, marking some of gold's highest levels in several years.Read More
Almost all base metal futures prices rose by over 3% in the week ending Friday April 16, despite falling lower from their readings on Thursday, boosted in part by a US dollar index that has been at its lowest in a month. Copper's three-month price closed on Friday at $9,211 per tonne, up 3.9% since Monday, when its 5pm price was of $8,861 per tonne. The metal reached $9,353.50 per tonne during tra...Read More
An overview of the new energy materials markets and their price moves from the past week.Susan Zou and Sybil Pan...Read More
Fastmarkets' benchmark copper concentrate index ended three weeks of declines on Friday April 16 with a 7.3% uptick week on week. Chinese smelters are mostly well-covered for production needs for the second quarter, with only a few June and July parcels sold at the mid-$20s per tonne...Read More
Lead stocks in Shanghai Futures Exchange-registered warehouses climbed by 24.1% in the week to Friday April 16, due to seasonal weakness, while production cuts in Yunnan province caused tin inventories to fall 5.9%.According to the exchange's latest stocks report, lead stocks stood at 65,444 tonnes on Friday, up 12,692 tonnes from 52,752 tonnes the a week earlier, while tin stocks declin...Read More
Australia-listed Consolidated Zinc began production of zinc and lead concentrates at its refurbished processing plant in Mexico on April 12, the company announced on Friday April 16.Consolidated Zinc is the sole owner of the Plomosas zinc-lead-silver project in Mexico, in the country's northern state of Chihuahua.It started zinc production at Plomosas in September 2018. According to its 2020 annua...Read More
Global aluminium producer United Co Rusal has completed its acquisition of Germany-based aluminium products producer Aluminium Rheinfelden GmbH, it said in a release dated Friday April 16. Rusal agreed in February to acquire the German producer, after Aluminium Rheinfelden applied for protective shield proceedings to protect the company from going bankrupt.The acquisition "is e...Read More
Failure of two furnaces at the Malaysia Smelting Corp's (MSC) main tin smelter in Penang will cause disruptions to shipments, while the company said that it would seek to increase production in its new facility near Port Klang to fulfill its orders. Correspondence seen by Fastmarkets this week showed that the smelter contacted a customer to say that, due to the failing of two of their furnaces in...Read More
A shortage of aluminium in certain regions and healthy demand are keeping prices and premiums for the light metal throughout the supply chain supported at record highs around the world.Premiums for P1020 aluminium in the physical market are at multi-year highs in Asia, the United States and Europe, with logistical complications and a lack of fresh production keeping supply tight in those regions e...Read More
Prices of flat-rolled steel imported into South America climbed further during the week ended Friday April 16 as mills from China, Japan and Brazil raised their offers and buyers were eager to close deals due to uncertainties about Chinese supply going forward, market participants said.New offers were quickly getting accepted by clients unsure whether availability from China for shipments in June...Read More
Slab export prices from Brazil increased in the week ended Friday April 16 due to new offers and a steady flat steel market in the United States.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel slab export, fob main port Brazil was $870-890 per tonne on Friday, up by $20 per tonne from $850-870 per tonne the previous week. After at least one deal was closed at $870...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States remain near an all-time high, with mills rapidly boosting what they charge customers in tight market conditions. Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $68.57 per hundredweight ($1,371.40 per short ton) on Friday April 16, down by 0.23% from $68.73 per cwt on Thursday April 15 but up by 2.04% from $67.20 per cwt one...Read More
Prices for cold-rolled and galvanized steel sheet in the United States climbed after market participants reported that mills, enjoying lengthy backlogs, increased their offers during the week to Friday April 16. Hot-dipped galvanized prices resumed their upward march on Thursday April 15 after a 34-week streak of increases was broken a week earlier. While some mills appear to be catching up on tar...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil continued to rise in Europe on Friday April 16 due to a shortage of material amid continuing strong demand, sources told Fastmrkets.Thursday's announcement of yet another offer price increase by ArcelorMittal gave additional support to the uptrend.Fastmarkets calculated its daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe, at ?,?926.25...Read More
Billet producers in the Commonwealth of Independent States selling material from the Black Sea basin continued to look for support outside nearer markets because buying activity there was limited by unfavorable market conditions. "Turkish customers practically give no bids," one trading source said, adding that softening scrap prices led to the negative sentiment in Turkish market. Fastmarkets' da...Read More
Hot-dipped galvanized (HDG) and pre-painted galvanized iron, or color coated coil, prices in Turkey nudged up in the week to Friday April 16, with demand still strong in both the domestic and export markets, sources told Fastmarkets.Despite strong demand, price changes were moderate this week after the very sharp increases in the previous weeks.Prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) - the base product f...Read More
Supply of prime ferrous scrap grades and acceptable substitutes is expected to come under pressure due to additional electric-arc furnace (EAF)-based steelmaking capacity in the United States, according to Philip Gibbs, director of metals equity research for KeyBanc Capital Markets.The proliferation of new mills over the next several quarters is going to structurally change the market for prime sc...Read More
Huntsman Set to Expand Nickel Sulphide Discovery at CanegrassSPONSOREDhuntsman explorationThe company has agreements for its iron ore and nickel operations in Brazil from 2022, for its copper operations in Chile from 2021 and has now signed an agreement with Engie Energia Peru to provide renewable energy for its Quellaveco copper mine in Moquegua, which is expected to begin production in 2022."Cop...Read More
Base metals prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were for the most part stronger this morning, Friday April 16, supported by robust economic data, while the base metals on the London Metal Exchange were consolidating after yesterday’s strength, which followed strong US data.* China’s gross domestic product (GDP) climbed by 18.3% year on year in Q1* US treasury yields dropped, lifting...Read More
The pig iron export market in the Commonwealth of Independent States was strong during the week to Thursday April 15 amid demand in neighboring outlets - though the import market in the United States was quiet.Fastmarkets' price assessment for high-manganese pig iron, export, fob main port Black Sea, CIS was $535-550 per tonne on Thursday, widening upward from $535-542 per tonne one week earlier....Read More
The price for UK-origin light iron scrap was steady in the week to Friday April 16 after narrowing upward in the previous week, with tight availability of material prompting major shredders to compete strongly for feedstock to keep their machines running cost-effectively, sources told Fastmarkets.British business conditions were expected to remain difficult through the current quarter at least and...Read More