Perhaps surprising no one, global manufacturers are now in contraction mode for the first time since 2012. That's according to the most recent reading of the sector's health, the purchasing manager's index (PMI), which headed lower for a record 13th straight month in May. The PMI posted 49.8, down from 50.4 a month earlier. As a reminder, anything above 50.0 indicates expansion; anything below,...Read More
Miles Franklin sponsored this article by Gary Christenson. The opinions are his.Christopher Whalen wrote "Trump is Right to Blow Up the Fed." He stated:"Anybody who cares to read the 1978 Humphrey Hawkins law will know that the Fed is directed by Congress to seek full employment and then zero inflation. Not 2 percent, but zero. Yet going back a decade or more, the Fed, led by luminaries such a...Read More
- Stefan GleasonMost Americans take food abundance for granted. Grocery store shelves are always stocked, and America's agricultural sector always grows more than enough corn, wheat, and soybean crops to keep the food production system humming along smoothly.That all could change as abruptly as the weather. In fact, historically wet conditions throughout the Midwest have put this year's spring...Read More
Although oil prices and Treasury yields have been falling an anticipation of a widely advertised economic slowdown in Europe and China, U.S. stocks are rising as though boom times lie ahead. What is going on?? It would appear that bulls simply cannot control themselves when there is talk of Fed easing. The prospect of QE3 has been in the news lately, driving a short-covering rally that has p...Read More
By: Ira EpsteinGold reaching into resistance areas we have seen before:Read More
A 50:50 joint venture between Luxembourg-based trader/steel producer Duferco and United States steelmaker Nucor Corp has announced plans to build a ?,?150 million steel beam rolling mill in Brescia, Northern Italy.The Duferdofin-Nucor mill is expected to be fully operational by mid-2022 and will have an annual production of more than 1 million tonnes of...Read More
The three-month lead price on the London Metal Exchange climbed by just under 2% at the close of trading on Thursday June 6, closing just below $1,900 per tonne amid news of Nyrstar's declaration of force majeure at its Port Pirie smelter in Australia. The force majeure affects lead contracts for deliveries from Port Pirie after the blast furnace failed at the end of May. Representatives at t...Read More
European steelmakers have called for the European Commission (EC) to review its decision to liberalize its import safeguard measures by increasing quota volumes by 5% each year, Fastmarkets has learned.The current safeguard mechanism will increase the level of tariff-free quotas for each product category by 5% after each year. The first liberalization will take place on July 1, 2019 - the end of t...Read More
Trade log for battery-grade lithium carbonate in China including trades, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets. Unless otherwise stated, all prices are per tonne on an ex-works China basis. Delivered prices are netted back. Fastmarkets prices Click here for Fastmarkets price assessment for lithium carbonate min 99.5% Li2CO3 battery grade, spot price range, ex-works China, yuan per tonne. Fastmar...Read More
Turkish mills booked no deep-sea cargoes on Thursday June 5, due to the Eid al-Fitr public holiday, sources told Fastmarkets.The market will remain subdued for the remainder of the week while Turkey marks the end of the period of abstinence for the Islamic holy month of...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Thursday June 6 that are worth another look.A potential global ban on internal combustion engines in 2030 could facilitate growth in nickel's share of the electric vehicle battery market to 80%, Al Bedwell, of automotive intelligence provider LMC Automotive, said at the 7th International Nickel Conference on Thursday June 6. A grou...Read More
Stocks extended their short-term run-up on Wednesday, as investors' sentiment further improved following Tuesday's rally. The S&P 500 index got closer to its late May local highs. Is this a new uptrend or just an upward correction?S&P 500 - 100 Points Above Monday's Low, Will Rally Continue?The U.S. stock market indexes gained 0.8% on Wednesday, extending their Tuesday's run-up, as investo...Read More
South32's decision to review the future of its manganese alloy assets comes as little surprise to fellow manganese alloy producers because they are likely to be considering similar options. The review, which could result in the divestment of the assets, reflects a wider predicament affecting alloy producers struggling with historically high ore prices and a subdued market for their own product. So...Read More
The London Metal Exchange has decided on a dispute over when the load-in, load-out (LILO) rule should have been activated, ruling in favor of warehouse company Istim. People familiar with the situation said that the warehousing firm had been found to have acted vigorously and without delay in its dealings with Glencore at its warehouses in Port Klang, Malaysia, following large cancellations of alu...Read More
The temporary truce on tariffs between China and the United States could be over, injecting a new round of uncertainty into the global financial markets and suspending hopes that a resolution to the countries' trade impasse was likely.US President Donald Trump has threatened to raise the tariff on $200 billion-worth of Chinese imports to 25% from 10% by Friday May 10. He also said that the US may...Read More
Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Email | Stitcher | RSSBix returns to Silver Doctors for a robust interview on gold, silver, crypto, manipulation, the Fed, and the reset (spoiler alert: there will be no reset)...Bix Weir of Road To Roota interviewed by Half DollarIn today's interview, Bix & Half Dollar dive into all of the important topics of the day, inc...Read More
The three-month lead price on the London Metal Exchange climbed by just under 2% at the close of trading on Thursday June 6, closing just below $1,900 per tonne amid news of Nyrstar's declaration of force majeure at its Port Pirie smelter in Australia. The force majeure affects lead contracts for deliveries from Port Pirie after the blast furnace failed at the end of May. Representatives at t...Read More
The cfr China segment of the seaborne coking coal market continued to weaken on Thursday June 6, with a cargo of premium materials being traded below prevailing levels.A cargo of a top Australian brand scheduled for loading over July 10-24 was sold to a Chinese trader at $204.67 per tonne cfr China, various sources told Fastmarkets.The same brand had changed hands at $212.77 per tonne cfr China mo...Read More
China's hot-rolled coil prices weakened again on Thursday June 6 on thin trading amid bearish sentiment and rising inventory levels.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,840-3,850 yuan ($556-557) per tonne, down 30 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tianjin): 3,790-3,800 yuan per tonne, down 10 yuan per tonneTransaction prices fell nationwide despite mills keeping their offers steady, with buyers being r...Read More
China's month-on-month new electric vehicles (NEV) sales rebounded in August after month-on-month declines in June and July. The drop in sales between May and June was the first drop since September 2016, but Fastmarkets MB had expected Chinese NEV sales to dip temporarily after the June subsidy changes came into effect because consumers and NEV manufacturers would have to adjust to the new subsid...Read More