The Comex copper price inched higher in US morning trading on Wednesday April 24 amid positive signs the United States and China's trade impasse could be approaching a resolution. The copper price for May settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange gained 0.95 cents to reach $2.9030 per lb. The red metal has been unable to set a clear price direction over the past few week...Read More
Gold spot ($) The downside prevails. Stay on top of the markets with Swissquote’s News & Analysis Pivot (invalidation): 1273.00 Our preferenceShort positions below 1273.00 with targets at 1266.00 & 1262.00 in extension. Alternative scenarioAbove 1273.00 look for further upside with 1276.50 & 1279.50 as targets. Comment The RSI shows downside momentum. Silver spot ($)...Read More
Import prices for stainless steel in East Asia went down in the week ended Wednesday April 24 because market participants delayed purchasing decisions while waiting for more clarity about how the price of nickel would move.The three-month nickel contract on the London Metal Exchange ended the official trading session on April 23 at $12,575-12,600 per tonne, down by $490-495 per tonne week on week....Read More
Gold prices on Tuesday finished lower as one popular measure of the U.S. dollar teetered near a two-year high, producing headwinds for bullion. Gold for June delivery GCM9, -0.27% declined $4.40, or 0.3%, to settle at $1,273.20 an ounce, with the commodity suffering from the lowest most-active contract settlement since Dec. 26, according to FactSet data. "The safe-haven metals continue to be ha...Read More
Iranian export slab prices have increased on higher offers over the past week, while billet prices and demand both fell in the wake of a renewed focus on sanctions by the United States, sources told Fastmarkets.Earlier this week, US president Donald Trump announced that he would not be renewing the exemption from sanctions on Iranian oil imports granted to several countries, in...Read More
The world's top copper miner Codelco has added its first hybrid dumptruck to its fleet at its El Teniente mine, the company said on Wednesday, in a global mining industry that is increasingly seeking to reduce its emissions and environmental footprint.The so-called Load-Haul-Dump truck, known as an LHD, built by Japanese equipment manufacturer Komatsu, is expected to boost productivity by 10% to 2...Read More
Anglo American Plc is no longer a darling at JPMorgan Chase & Co.After almost three years of rating the mining giant's stock as overweight, the firm downgraded it to neutral on Wednesday citing a trio of concerns - shares no longer look as cheap, the company's 2020 earnings may see a cut and capital returns may be constrained in the first half of the year. Shares slid as much as 3 percent in Londo...Read More
BHP, Barrick Gold, Teck Resources and Antofagasta are a few of the major mining companies that, together with equipment suppliers and universities, have helped develop global guidelines on automation.The document, published this week by Canada-based Global Mining Guidelines Group (GMG), outlines a framework for miners to follow when considering adding autonomous equipment to their operations. It a...Read More
Chile-focused copper miner Antofagasta posted a 22.6 percent jump in first-quarter copper production and maintained its full-year output outlook, despite the possibility that China may ease stimulus measures which could hurt prices.Antofagasta said on Wednesday production in the quarter was bolstered by better quality ore and higher output, mainly at its Centinela mine, and kept its annual output...Read More
The price of hollow steel sections in both the Northern and Southern European domestic markets has remained stable this week amid heavily subdued market activity caused by the Easter holiday.The majority of market participants were absent leaving trading activity thin as a result, sources told Fastmarkets. Yet despite the stable price assessment, the market fundamentals are not perfectly balanced,...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday April 24 that are worth another look.OM Manganese will spend as much as Australian $7.3 million ($5.2 million) to establish a manganese ore joint venture in western Australia with copper-gold-manganese explorer Bryah Resources, Fastmarkets heard on Wednesday April 24.Carmaker BMW has locked in supply of cobalt metal...Read More
The global refined copper market logged an 8,000-tonne deficit in January 2019, extending the 390,000-tonne deficit seen for the full-year 2018 and lending some support to worldwide premiums and prices, according to data released by the International Copper Study Group.Preliminary data showed that world mine production was largely unchanged year on year in January, despite declines in Chilean...Read More
United States trade action against imports of jumbo rolls of aluminium foil from China have shown some encouraging signs in the domestic industry, the Aluminum Association said in a paper released on Tuesday April 23.Intake of the product from the Asian country declined by 64% between 2017 and 2018, with domestic production also increasing, it said.The volume of aluminium foil impor...Read More
Fastmarkets premiums held in all regions on Tuesday April 23 despite supply uncertainty from Indonesia and stocks held off-exchange. European buyers stay out of spot market. The US market is heavily supplied and spot demand is quiet over the Passover/Easter holiday. China's import window closed. European premiums hold despite falling LME tin price In Europe, Fastmarkets assessed the p...Read More
The Comex copper price inched higher in US morning trading on Wednesday April 24 amid positive signs the United States and China's trade impasse could be approaching a resolution. The copper price for May settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange gained 0.95 cents to reach $2.9030 per lb. The red metal has been unable to set a clear price direction over the past few week...Read More
A large backwardation in the cash/three-month spread put pressure on global zinc markets in the week to Tuesday April 23 with premiums in Europe at their lowest levels since 2009; while in the United States, market participants are still awaiting a second-quarter boost. European zinc market falls to 2009 low. US market unchanged, participants hopeful for uptick. Chinese zinc premium fal...Read More
BHP, Barrick Gold, Teck Resources and Antofagasta are a few of the major mining companies that, together with equipment suppliers and universities, have helped develop global guidelines on automation.The document, published this week by Canada-based Global Mining Guidelines Group (GMG), outlines a framework for miners to follow when considering adding autonomous equipment to their operations. It a...Read More
ALX Uranium (TSXV: AL) announced this week that it has signed a binding option agreement with Orano Canada to earn up to a 51% participating interest in the Close Lake uranium project located in the eastern Athabasca Basin area of northern Saskatchewan, Canada.In a media statement, ALX said the execution of the agreement confirms a five-year deal according to which the company has to fund explorat...Read More
The price range for rebar produced and delivered in Northern Europe has remained unchanged week on week on limited market activity, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday April 24.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic rebar in Northern Europe was ?,?535-550 ($601-618) per tonne delivered on Wednesday, unchanged from April 17.Following the long Easter weekend, a number of countries...Read More
The European domestic price for mesh-quality wire rod has remained flat week on week in a quiet market, market participants told Fastmarkets on Wednesday April 24.Following the long Easter holiday weekend, a number of countries in both Northern and Southern Europe, including Germany, Italy and Spain, will also celebrate...Read More