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

A summary of London Metal Exchange warrant premiums from across the globe for the week to Wednesday September 25.Please click...Read More

Despite concerns of low prices and poor demand, the aluminium market still has growth potential due to the automotive industry, McKinsey & Company's Benedikt Zeumer said at Fastmarkets' International Aluminium Conference held in Athens, Greece.The fastest growing underlying factor to global aluminium growth is the global automotive sector, Zeumer said. McKinsey's outlook does not indicate that the...Read More

Fastmarkets outlines some of the key topics likely to dominate discussions when participants of the battery raw materials and electric vehicle supply chain gathers in Amsterdam this week.Are cobalt buyers serious about booking early for 2020? Some discussions for cobalt supply agreements in 2020 started almost as soon as Glencore announced it would close its Mutanda mine at the end of the yea...Read More

The European low-lead tin premium moved for the first time in 15 weeks on Tuesday September 24, reflecting a combination of reduced exports amid US-imposed tariffs on steel and stagnant demand, while the latter factor kept both US and Asian premiums stable. Low-lead European premium suffers in 15% drop  Illiquidity stifles US market  Closed import window limits Asian business European l...Read More

Shanghai in-warehouse and cif full-plate nickel premiums dramatically swung into an unprecedented discount in the week to September 24 on persistent London Metal Exchange nickel spread backwardations and widening import arbitrage losses. China premiums hit a discount on deep spread backwardation amid frenzied offloading of material in the region European, United States premiums hold amid thin trad...Read More

Weakening automotive sales and production figures in India pushed the Indian lead premium to a new low in the week to September 24, while trade concluded higher in the Italian zinc market pushing the delivered, duty-paid premium up despite a stolid global demand picture....Read More

Global long steel consumption was expected to reach 851 million tonnes in 2019, up by 2.4% year-on-year although mounting political uncertainties such as trade wars and the UK's intended exit from the EU may soften this growth, according to steelmaker Celsa."A strong performance in construction activity in China, India and the rest of Asia will give support to long products consumption, specifical...Read More

Brazilian flat steelmakers were ready to announce to distributors an increase in their prices for early October, because of reduced competition from imported material, according to national flat steel distribution association Inda.Producers were announcing a 10% price increase to remove discounts that have been granted to domestic buyers, according to Inda president Carlos Loureiro."By October 7,...Read More

RAPAPORT... An emerald and diamond bracelet by Graff fetched more than four times its highestimate at Bonhams, leading an auction that saw many pieces crush presale estimates.  The piece, which was the subject of a fierce bidding war,features 13 step-cut Colombian emeralds, the largest of which is 2.56 carats,interspersed with an equal number of step-cut diamonds. It sold to a privatebuy...Read More

RAPAPORT... The Dubai Multi Commodities Center (DMCC) has unveiled aredesigned diamond exchange, featuring the world's largest diamond-tradingfloor and special windows that will enable it to hold ruby and sapphiretenders. The Dubai Diamond Exchange (DDE), located in Almas Towers, nowhas 41 tables, fully secured with cameras, as well as special lighting thatallows buyers to examine diamonds an...Read More

RAPAPORT... A Cartier twin sapphire and diamond ring fetched more than double its low estimate at Skinner Auctioneers. The piece, which was created in the 1950s, features twoKashmir sapphires weighing 5.34 and 4.91 carats, and tapered, baguette-cutdiamonds. It sold for $873,000 at the September 17 Important Jewelry sale inBoston against a presale estimate of $300,000 to $500,000. Skinner als...Read More

RAPAPORT... WD Lab Grown Diamonds has appointed jewelry-industry veteranSue Rechner CEO. She will be responsible for growing the brand and expandingthe company's market reach. Rechner, who held executive roles at Movado, FrederickGoldman, Citizen and Seiko, was most recently global president of outdoorfootwear and apparel brand Merrell. She will succeed founder Clive Hill, whowill continue to...Read More

The DMCC has unveiled the redesigned Dubai Diamond Exchange (DDE) in the Almas Tower. The DMCC says the redesigned trading floor is the largest in the world.The new facility has 41 tables, secured with cameras, state-of-the-art technology and specialist lighting and can host 200 buyers at once. Although it is designed for diamond trading, the old tinted windows have been replaced by white crystal...Read More

RAPAPORT... Diamcor Mining's rough-diamond sales fell 22% year on yearto $569,059 in the second fiscal quarter amid production of smaller,lower-quality stones. The company sold 3,760 carats, including a 20.66-caratgem-quality rough, for an average price of $151 per carat during the periodending September 30, it said last week. Although the volume of sales from its Krone-Endora at Venetia proj...Read More

RAPAPORT... Chinese internet giant Tencent Holdings has led a $20 million investment in technology company Everledger, which provides blockchain services to the diamond industry.Everledger will use the money from the Series A funding round to finance its growth. The company, whose clients include G? 1/4 belin Gem Lab, Chow Tai Fook and Hari Krishna Exports, alsoreceived investments from Graph...Read More

Steel H-beam prices in Europe were unchanged this week but recent feedstock price falls have caused uncertainty which is delaying further buying activity, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday September 25.Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel beams, domestic, delivered Northern Europe, was ?,?560-600 ($616-660) per tonne on September 25, unchanged week on week."The market is more than quiet. So...Read More

(IDEX Online) - The Alrosa Diamond Inspector, the first portable Russian instrument for diamond verification, has received high results in the ASSURE testing program run by the Diamond Producers Association (DPA). The testing was carried out by UL Verification Services, Inc., an independent laboratory in the U.S. The DPA program is designed to standardize the effectiveness of tools and specia...Read More

(IDEX Online) - The Minerals Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe (MMCZ) has high expectations for its final auction of the year. The corporation sold 316,000 carats at its most recent tender. In the next sale, which is anticipated for November, according to The Herald, MMCZ hopes to sell 400,000-500,000 carats of goods. While Zimbabwe expects to almost double its production this year - 4.1...Read More

(IDEX Online) - The lab-grown diamond sector continues to strengthen its leadership. WD Lab Grown Diamonds has appointed Sue Rechner, former global president of Merrell, as its CEO.Read was also president of Victorinox Swiss Army and CEO of Victorinox Swiss Army Watch and has leadership experience with global brands such as Movado, Seiko, Citizen and Frederick Goldman."I see WD as a leading force...Read More

Botswana Diamonds, together with its associate Vutomi, has signed a contract mining and processing agreement with Eurafrican Diamond Corporation (EDC) to mine and process the diamond-bearing gravels and residual stockpiles on a portion of the Marsfontein farm, in Limpopo.Botswana Diamonds chairperson John Teeling indicated that partnering with EDC paved the way for commercial production to restart...Read More