The conclusion of various holiday seasons, the end of winter, the progress of Covid-19 vaccination programs, and the will to return to more normal ways of life were all strong positives for the global long steel products market, the International Rebar Producers & Exporters Association (Irepas) said last week.The current situation and sentiment were generally very good in the world's long steel ma...Read More

The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.United StatesDomestic prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) in the United States averaged $1,316 per tonne in February 2021, and Fastmarkets' research team expects prices to maintain that momentum through March and April.Flat steel product prices in the country continue to be supported by exceedingly tight supply, reflecting prod...Read More

RAPAPORT... Platinum Guild International (PGI) will award up to half a million dollars to manufacturers, designers or retailers who commit to focusing on platinum jewelry.The money will go to one or more members of the industry as part of a three-year program to develop demand for, and speed growth of, platinum jewelry in the US, PGI said Tuesday. The organization will give out a maximum of $150,0...Read More

RAPAPORT... Signet Jewelers has launched a custom-jewelry design hub at a number of its Jared stores across the US, allowing its customers to create one-of-a-kind pieces easily.The Jared Foundry will be located inside 19 of the jeweler's locations, including in New York, California, Texas, and its hometown of Ohio, the company said Tuesday. Customers will work with one of Jared's 1,400 artisans an...Read More

RAPAPORT... Tiffany & Co. has named Ruba Abu-Nimah as executive creative director, it said Tuesday. She will succeed Reed Krakoff in the role, Abu-Nimah is the first major creative hire for the company since Krakoff exited following its takeover by LVMH. Before joining Tiffany, she was senior vice president and creative director at beauty and makeup giant Revlon. Abu-Nimah was also the fi...Read More

RAPAPORT... Sales momentum continued for the two largest diamond miners in February amid higher rough prices and strong retail demand in the US and China.De Beers raked in $550 million at its second sales cycle of the year, an increase of 52% versus the equivalent trading session in 2020, it reported Wednesday. Alrosa saw more moderate growth of 7% for a total of $372 million at its February...Read More

(IDEX Online) - The new Biden administration has bowed to pressure and re-imposed sanctions on Israeli diamond billionaire Dan Gertler.It reverses a decision by former President Trump, who unfroze his US assets barely a month ago, during his final days in office.......That move infuriated human rights groups in the Democratic Republic of Congo, who claim he looted the nation's mineral wealth...Read More

(IDEX Online) - Pandora today reported a growth in sales during February, despite a quarter of its 2,700 stores remaining closed because of the pandemic.The Danish jeweler, best known for its charm bracelets, said year-on-year organic growth for the  month was up 12 per cent and total sell-out growth was up seven per cent.That translates into a quarter to date organic growth of four per cent...Read More

(IDEX Online) - Debmarine Namibia, the world's largest largest marine diamond mining company, has reported a 13 per cent drop in production.The company, a joint venture between De Beers and the Namibian government, produced 1.125m carats as the global pandemic hit demand.Debmarine's existing fleet dredges thousands of tonnes of sediment from 150 meters below the seabed, 12 miles off Nami...Read More

Domestic prices in Europe for steel cold-rolled coil increased further over the week to Wednesday March 10 due to a materials shortage, sources have told Fastmarkets.Producers across Europe have been targeting further prices rises.At the end of last week, ArcelorMittal raised its official offer for CRC to ?,?900 ($1,069) per tonne ex-works, up by ?,?20 per tonne.Both end-consumers and distributors...Read More

A summary of London Metal Exchange warrant premiums from across the globe for the week to Wednesday March 10.Please click...Read More

The London Metal Exchange three-month tin price closed at $25,125 per tonne on Wednesday March 10, while the lead price sunk to levels last seen in November 2020 alongside a broad-based consolidation for most base metals. Tin's near-3% price rise on Wednesday comes on the back of period of weakness which targeted the entire complex since the start of March following an earlier surge at the end of...Read More

Shanghai zinc premiums were at their highest in almost two years due to a narrower arbitrage import loss in the week to Tuesday March 9, while premiums for zinc and lead across the other regions stayed largely flat from a week agoShanghai zinc premiums rise to highest since May 2019 amid narrower arbitrage loss.  Zinc premiums flat in South East Asia, with freight costs improving trade. ...Read More

There is no wait time for aluminium at Istim's London Metal Exchange warehouses in Port Klang, Malaysia, for the first time since December 2018, according to the LME's latest queue report that covers February. The zero-day wait for aluminium at Istim warehouses at the end of February, is down from 23 days at the end of January 2021. Queues to remove metal from LME-approved warehouses hit a high of...Read More

The conclusion of various holiday seasons, the end of winter, the progress of Covid-19 vaccination programs, and the will to return to more normal ways of life were all strong positives for the global long steel products market, the International Rebar Producers & Exporters Association (Irepas) said last week.The current situation and sentiment were generally very good in the world's long steel ma...Read More

A summary of the financial results from German metals distributor Kl??ckner & Co for the fourth quarter and full year of 2020.In brief Steel demand, negatively affected by the Covid-19 pandemic in the first half of 2020, had started to recover toward the year-end, driving an improvement in Kl??ckner's results. In Europe, the price of flat steel products, which account for around 50% of Kl??ckner's...Read More

Italian re-rollers have been trying to achieve a price rise for domestic heavy steel plate due to the high cost of steel slab feedstock, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday March 10."In Italy, prices are starting now from ?,?700 [$832] per tonne ex-works, [and they are] targeting ?,?750 per tonne ex-works. Slab demand will be good because mills are producing at a good pace, so they will need to...Read More

Domestic prices for steel hot-rolled coil in Europe increased again over the week to Wednesday March 10, due to a shortage of material, sources have told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets calculated its daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe, at ?,?762.50 ($906.00) per tonne on Wednesday, up by ?,?6.25 per tonne from ?,?756.25 per tonne on March 9.The index was also up by ?,?13.75...Read More

Steel rebar prices in the north of Europe have been broadly flat over the past week despite a lack of buying activity, but with support from high feedstock prices, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday March 10.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, delivered Northern Europe, was ?,?630-660 ($749-784) per tonne on Wednesday, widening downward from ?,?640-...Read More

Billet producers from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) faced some pressure from lower scrap costs and growing transportation prices this week, sources said on March 10.CIS-origin billet was available to foreign customers at $590-600 per tonne fob Black Sea this week, unchanged from a week earlier.If last week a number of sales were heard done to Turkey, this week trading activity was m...Read More