The Comex copper price failed to maintain momentum after the US Federal Reserve increased interest rates and signalled a hawkish monetary policy strategy for 2019.The copper price for March settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange dipped 2.00 cents to $2.69 per lb."Both the Fed's policy statement and Jay Powell's news conference came across as more hawkish than...Read More
The three-month base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were for the most part weaker this morning, Thursday December 20. The exception was aluminium that was up by 0.4% at $1,916 per tonne, while the rest were lower by an average of 0.5%.Copper was down the most with a 1.2% drop to $5,994 per tonne, this after rebounding 1.8% on Tuesday. Today's low at $5,946 per tonne once again breached...Read More
Tim Termuende, President and CEO of Eagle Plains Resources, third from right, takes reporters and mining analysts on a tour of company mineral properties. Source: Eagle Plains Resources Ltd.Rockridge Resources Ltd. [ROCK-TSXV] shares were active Thursday December 20 after the company said the TSX Venture Exchange has approved the company's option agreement to acquire the Knife Lake Copper VMS proj...Read More
As Warren Buffett likes to say, “price you what you pay, value is what you get.” It’s the reason why a $300-per-share stock can be cheap, while a $3 one can be expensive. With that said, there’s something about low-priced stocks that captivates investors’ imaginations. After all, there’s nothing like being able to buy a ton of shares for dirt cheap and having th...Read More
Pikangikum First Nation has been connected to Ontario's electricity grid, bringing a reliable, clean supply of power to the community for the first time.Pikangikum is a remote First Nation community located approximately 100 kilometers northwest of Red Lake. Prior to its connection, it was one of Ontario's largest off-grid First Nation communities, with a population of over 2,500 people. "I'm prou...Read More
A requirement for a higher energy density for new EV battery projects has been removed from the official regulations on automobile industry investment published by the country's National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) on its website. The energy density threshold was removed from the final version of the regulations on Tuesday December 18 owing to the fact that current technology is not d...Read More
Domestic prices for cold-rolled coil (CRC) in Europe have been largely unchanged over the week, but sentiment in the market remains negative, sources told Fastmarkets.The market has been slow due to the seasonal de-stocking from distributors ahead of the year-end.Market sources believe that although activity will somewhat recover in the first half of January, the demand improvement will not be str...Read More
One of the lasting inventions that has not only survived the test of time but is also still a vital part of modern life is the electric motor.We take it for granted, but we use it every single day, whether it's in common household appliances like the washer and dryer or the heaters and A/C units that are found in our automobiles.In fact, the electric motor is so ubiquitous that you probably don't...Read More
China's hot-rolled coil prices rebounded on Thursday December 20 amid lower inventory, with those in the north posting larger increases on fears of a supply drop.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,810-3,820 yuan ($552-554) per tonne, up 10-20 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tianjin): 3,680-3,700 yuan per tonne, up 60-70 yuan per tonneHRC inventory levels in the country fell by around 76,600 tonnes...Read More
Ferrous futures in China fell during morning trading on Thursday December 20, apart from the iron ore contract which posted small gains during the session.Futures closing prices - morning session Shanghai Futures Exchange May rebar: 3,433 yuan ($498) per tonne, down 13 yuan per tonneMay hot-rolled coil: 3,438 yuan per tonne, down 22 yuan per tonne Dalian Commodity Exchange May iron ore: 490.50 yua...Read More
The latest news and price moves to start the Asian day on Friday December 21.Base metal prices on the London Metal Exchange were mixed at the close of trading on Thursday December 20, with a continued retreat in the United States dollar index failing to spur upward price action amid broadly moderate volumes. Read more in our live futures report.Here are how prices looked at the close of trading:It...Read More
Hilliard MacBeth, author of When the Bubble Bursts, points to something big happening in the Canadian housing market. For real estate flippers and Liberal Party of Canada politicians, that is probably not a good thing. In an exclusive interview with HoweStreet.com available on Canadian Insider, MacBeth alerts Canadians that mortgage growth has fallen to dangerous levels.Based on the most recent m...Read More
The lack of trading activity in the second half of December continued to put pressure on Turkish long steel exporters, and on rebar in particular, which has forced suppliers to further decrease offers.The European Commission's decision to extend safeguard regulations until February 1, 2019 has added more uncertainty into the market, leaving the question of how much rebar will be allowed to be supp...Read More
Some domestic rebar producers in Egypt have reduced prices, however, steel billet import prices have remained stable in the past week, sources said on Thursday December 20.Fastmarkets MB's weekly price assessment for steel billet imported into Egypt was at $440-445 per tonne cfr on Thursday, unchanged from the previous assessment.Billet producers in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) wer...Read More
Turkish scrap import prices increased on Thursday December 20 on positive sentiment although no new deals were heard, sources told Fastmarkets MB. Several new bookings were heard on December 18, including a steel producer in the Iskenderun region booking a European cargo comprising 25,000 tonnes of heavy melting scrap (HMS) 1&2 (75:25), 7,000 tonnes of a mixture of bonus and shredded...Read More
Steelmaker Tosyali Algeria has announced the completion of a 'state-of-the-art' direct reduced iron-making (DRI) plant with a nameplate capacity of 2.5 million tonnes per year. In a press release this week, Suhat Korkmaz, chief executive officer of Tosyali Holdings, the Turkey-headquartered parent company of Tosyali Algeria, said the plant, "provides Tosyali Algeria with greater flexibility to pro...Read More
Singapore Exchange's 65% Fe iron ore derivative contract continues to lend transparency to the high-grade segment, with trades registered for August-December 2019 months on Thursday December 20 and physical prices up amid active trading.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $72.26 per tonne cfr Qingdao, up $3.11 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $72.09 per tonne cfr Qingdao, up $3.14 per tonne....Read More
Some domestic rebar producers in Egypt have reduced prices, however, steel billet import prices have remained stable in the past week, sources said on Thursday December 20.Fastmarkets MB's weekly price assessment for steel billet imported into Egypt was at $440-445 per tonne cfr on Thursday, unchanged from the previous assessment.Billet producers in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) wer...Read More
CloseGain/LossGold $1261.00+$19.00Silver$14.77+$0.19XAU69.79+4.78%HUI158.49+4.97%GDM576.83+3.08%JSE Gold1344.82-10.71USD96.34-0.72Euro114.57+0.85Yen90.12+0.82Oil$45.88-$2.2910-Year2.804%+0.024T-Bond144.71875-0.3125Dow22859.60-1.99%Nasdaq6528.41-1.65%S&P2467.42-1.58% The Metals: Gold gained $24.30 to a new 5-month high at $1266.30 by early afternoon in New York before it c...Read More
By Stefan GleasonThe Fed blinked - but didn't flinch away from another rate hike. On Wednesday, Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) policymakers rejected President Donald Trump's call for a pause. They raised their benchmark rate by a quarter point to a range up to 2.5%.The only concession Fed chairman Jerome Powell offered to Trump and nervous stock market investors was a revised, less hawkish...Read More