A shortage of chrome ore in India has caused domestic alloy prices to ratchet upward but has reduced export volumes, market participants told Fastmarkets on Tuesday October 13.But an expected resumption of ore production should induce Indian ferro-chrome producers to return to their traditional export markets, they added.India traditionally produces around 1.3-1.4 million tonnes per year of high-c...Read More

A summary of base metals premiums from across the globe for the week to Tuesday October 13.Please click...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Tuesday October 13 that are worth another look.The numbers of cases of Covid-19 infection have begun to grow once more across Europe, and Fastmarkets has heard the fears of various market participants about the consequences that any new restrictions or lockdowns could have for...Read More

London Metal Exchange three-month base metals prices with the exception of aluminium were lower at the close on Tuesday October 13, following the downward course of United States equities markets over the course of the day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed more than 100 points or 0.3% on Tuesday amid news that coronavirus cases in the US had exceeded 8 million on the same day. A stronger doll...Read More

Seaborne premium hard coking coal prices slumped on Tuesday October 13, with the latest transactions agreed at lower prices while other participants watched the market for developments.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $125.04 per tonne, down $6.04 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $135.76 per tonne, down $4.38 per tonneHard coking coal, fob DBCT: $111.02 per to...Read More

"THEY" will defend $26/oz silver with all the silver derivatives they can throw at the market, but that will be their downfall...by Bix Weir of Road to Roota"THEY" will defend $26/oz silver with all the silver derivatives they can throw at the market...but that will be their downfall. High Frequency Traders aren't used to a market that has a Physical Delivery component and they will find themselve...Read More

Are people fearing the size of the national debt, inflation or deflation?Mark O'Byrne interviewed by Lior Gantz on GoldCoreGoldCore's Mark O'Byrne interviewed by the Wealth Research Group talking about the start of a new bull run for gold and silver and answering the following questions...What investors are currently buyingThe importance of owning physical goldComparing golds performance with prev...Read More

Seaborne iron ore prices buckled on Tuesday October 13, amid soaring port inventories in China and weakened demand for finished steel, according to trade sources.Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $121.15 per tonne, down $3.08 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $121.30 per tonne, down $3.14 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $112...Read More

Some think the rally is over and that it's time to sell...Lynette Zang with Chris Marcus on Arcadia EconomicsAfter a volatile summer, silver is now trading in the mid-$20's.Some think the rally is over and that it's time to sell. But Lynette Zang of ITM Trading still thinks silver is "severely" undervalued.To find out why, click to watch the video now!Read More

Silver DRAMATICALLY outpaces other assets, this year included, and including gold...by Peter Krauth via Streetwise ReportsWe're still in the early innings of a precious metals bull market.And if you're wondering whether you need to own some silver, my answer is categorically yes.It's only a matter of degree.With silver that's important because it acts like gold, but on steroids.Silver can languish...Read More

RAPAPORT... The World Jewellery Confederation (CIBJO) has recommended that laboratories use the term "grading report" for natural diamonds only, arguing that lab-grown stones lack the rarity that underpins the concept of grading.Instead, documents providing details of synthetic diamonds should be called "Laboratory-Grown Diamond Product Specifications," CIBJO urges in a new set of guidelines...Read More

RAPAPORT... The days when brands made all their business decisions on their own are gone. With bigger competition, tougher economic challenges, and the increasingly scary potential of coming across as tone deaf in marketing campaigns, getting advice just makes sense. And who better to provide it than members of your target audience?Having the input of a client advisory board "is so useful because...Read More

RAPAPORT... Hong Kong-based jeweler Tse Sui Luen (TSL) expects to incur a net loss of at least HKD 40 million ($5.2 million) for the first fiscal half as the Covid-19 pandemic depressed the company's sales.The loss for the six months ending September 30 compares with a net profit of HKD 1.6 million ($206,454) in the same period last year, the retailer said last week. "The implementation of so...Read More

RAPAPORT... US polished-diamond imports dropped 39% year on year to $821 million in August, reflecting lower volumes and price per carat, according to data from the Commerce Department. The decline was gentler than the 50% drop the country recorded in July, but steeper than June's 35% slowdown. US Trade Data for August 2020Read More

(IDEX Online) - Diamonds discovered at a gold deposit in Canada hint at a large and untapped reserve, say researchers.They are in sediments that are "an exact analog" of those in South Africa's famous Witwatersrand Goldfields, replicating the extremely rare combination of gold and diamonds in the same place.Experts from the University of Alberta were astonished by the find at outcrop at Nunav...Read More

(IDEX Online) - Alrosa boss Sergei Ivanov has told Russia's President Vladimir Putin he's "confident" of a deal to sell millions of carats of rough to the government's Gokhran - its precious metals and gems repository.Such an arrangement would provide a lifeline for the miner, which is only now recovering from months of dismal sales as a result of the global pandemic.The Alrosa CEO...Read More

Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Northern Europe were fairly stable day on day on Tuesday October 13 because buyers were staying in "wait-and-see" mode until the price trend became clear, sources have told Fastmarkets.The mills, however, continued to push for higher prices because they had good order books. The majority of Northern European steelmakers claimed to be sold out for December rol...Read More

(IDEX Online) - British fashion designer Debbie Wingham created a breathtaking $26m diamond-encrusted party dress for a billionaire birthday girl.It was studded with 15 red diamonds, from one and a half to four carats worth $23.8m in total, plus a host of other gems.Wingham has a reputation for adding extravagant sparkle to cake and couture for the ultra-rich.  In 2015 she baked and decorated...Read More

The Turkish steel mills have purchased further deep-sea scrap material at firmer prices, market sources said on Tuesday October 13.A steel mill in the Izmir region booked a US cargo consisting of HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $285 per tonne and bonus at $295 per tonne cfr.The supplier did not wish to disclose the composition of the cargo when contacted.This compared with the previous US cargo sold on October...Read More

Global supply chain and logistics management company Mercury Resources LLC has combined forces with major national asset-based trucking company Beemac Inc to create Mercury Transportation Solutions LLC (MTS). The joint venture results in the enlarged company becoming Mercury Group, expanding its activities from global supply chain management and consultancy to include trucking...Read More