The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.The latest forecast of global oil country tubular goods (OCTG) consumption paints a stark picture of the slowdown in demand from the energy industry in the wake of the Covid-19 outbreak and subsequent oil and gas retreat.For 2020, total global consumption is expected to amount to 13.2 million tonnes, a decline of nearly 3.5...Read More

The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.Depending on which market one looks at, prices of coated steels have either risen, fallen or remained roughly the same since mid-May. One crucial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic that has swept the world this year is the decoupling it appears to have created between global steel markets.In China, prices of most steel products...Read More

The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.US prices continue to hold Seamless oil country tubular goods (OCTG) and line pipe prices remained unchanged for the third straight month in June, and we expect them to remain stable through the summer before edging higher on the back of a measured rise in drilling rates.The lack of price movement in recent months does not i...Read More

The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.This month's key North American steel forecast highlights:?EUR?On the back of US steelmakers' $50- to $60-per-ton price hikes in late April, domestic hot-rolled coil prices improved to a monthly average of $493 per ton in May, up from $488 per ton in April. In contrast, both cold-rolled coil and hot-dipped galvanized sheet p...Read More

The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.In previous reports, we noted that upside risks to our forecasts existed. These were based on Chinese steel production, and in turn alloy consumption, outperforming our expectations.Chinese crude steel production is rising each month in a year-on-year comparison, prompting our revised view that Chinese alloy consumption will...Read More

The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.The Covid-19 pandemic and the associated impacts on steel production, mining and manufacturing activity, end-use consumption, and trade and transportation continue to dominate ferro-alloy markets. US steel mills are operating at around 50% of capacity, with similarly low operating rates evident in Europe as well. Chinese ste...Read More

Ferro-alloys prices have generally retreated over the past month, with demand concerns gaining in prominence.The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.Ferro-alloy pricing trends have generally diverged ove the past month, depending on the security of the supply-side position of the market. With most supply concerns fading with the resumption of industrial activity i...Read More

The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.This month's key ferro-alloy forecast highlights:While the ferro-alloy industry's initial response to the Covid-19 outbreak was marked by rising prices primarily in response to supply-side concerns, focus has now shifted somewhat. As Chinese activity slowly returns to more normal levels, for alloys with a strong Chinese prod...Read More

The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.The recent announcement about Vale's resumption of operations in Brazil, along with new concerns about a slump in demand because of heavy rainfall in China, has resulted in the end of the iron ore price rally. There has also been pressure from tight steel spreads, with the operating margins for Chinese steel mills shrinking...Read More

The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.Iron ore prices climbed further last week and we expect the elevated levels to remain into the next month. In particular, further upside will come from blast furnace (BF) capacity, which was reduced in Europe, Japan and the United States and has now come back online after restrictions started to be removed. With Covid-19 spr...Read More

The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.Iron ore prices have shot up as market participants have judged the supply risks from Covid-19 higher at this point in time when there is already a tight seaborne market. Despite the efforts to ramp up, Vale is struggling to catch up with its pre-dam disaster export volumes and its slow recovery has only been hit further by...Read More

The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.Iron oreSentiment in the iron ore market continues to be dominated by concerns about supply disruptions in Brazil. Prices spiked above $100 per tonne after reports that there had been a recent surge of Covid-19 cases at Vale's three mines in Itabira. A...Read More

The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts is ready to view.Stainless steel prices are on the increase in June. As far as this market is concerned, it appears as though the Covid-19 pandemic has had little impact so far, with prices on the most common grades of stainless steel just 2-4% lower than they were at the turn of the year in most markets.Even in Asia, a region often talked ab...Read More

The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts is ready to view.Stainless steel prices have fared relatively well over the past couple of months in the face of the threat from the Covid-19 pandemic.In grade-304 material, the most common grade of stainless steel, prices were down by about 5-7% since the turn of the year - not bad, when compared with the falls in prices of other assets so f...Read More

The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.Having first hit Asia during early 2020, the Covid-19 viral outbreak is now having an even bigger impact on European countries and the US. Widespread lockdown measures have been put in place on people and industry, and economic activity has slowed markedly.For now, stainless steel markets in Europe and the US are yet to show...Read More

The new issue of the Seamless OCTG & Linepipe Market Tracker is now online at metalbulletinresearch.com.In this edition, Fastmarkets' research team delivers analysis of seamless OCTG and linepipe across international markets:Covid-19 underscores pipe outlookUnsurprisingly, the concern in the seamless pipe markets across the regions is the effect of the spread of Covid-19 on public health and econo...Read More

Tin premiums in the United States and Europe were subject to pressure in the two weeks to Wednesday July 1, with a wide backwardation in the metal's forward curve on the London Metal Exchange limiting business while a narrowing arbitrage window to import tin into China supported current levels. Covid-19 resurgence hinders US marketRenewed spot interest fails to stop falling Rotterdam premiumStrong...Read More

RAPAPORT... Indian trade bodies have recommended continued limits on rough-diamond imports in July, with a fresh weeklong shutdown of the Surat cutting sector adding to concerns about the market.The Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) and four other organizations have called for the industry to avoid shipping rough into the country between July 10 and 31. They are giving comp...Read More

RAPAPORT... Christie's brought in more than $4 million at its latest digital sale, with a 29-carat diamond earning the highest online price ever for a jewel.The emerald-cut, 28.86-carat, D-color, VVS1-clarity, type IIa diamond ring garnered $2.1 million, beating its $2 million high estimate at the Jewels Online sale, Christie's said Tuesday. The piece received offers as soon as the sale start...Read More

Industry associations up and down the steel and metals supply chain applauded the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) trade pact going into effect on Wednesday July 1.The update to the North American Free Trade Agreement - which previously governed trade between the three nations - should increase demand while also assuring that essential cross-border supply chains remain intact, the Ame...Read More