U.S. equity index futures were lower this morning. S&P 500 futures were down 52 points in pre-opening trade. Equity index futures followed a 2% drop by European equity indices and a 3% drop by the Nikkei Average.L Brands dropped $2.30 to $66.49 after the company announced plans to spin off its Victoria Secrets division by August.Simon Property fell $4.23 to $122.52 despite reporting higher tha...Read More

Turkish steel producers continued to pay higher prices for deep-sea scrap after securing more billet sales into China, market participants told Fastmarkets on Tuesday May 11.A steel mill in the Marmara region booked a Baltic Sea cargo, comprising HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $495 per tonne and plate and structural (P&S) at $505 per tonne cfr. The cargo breakdown was not clear at the time of publication.The...Read More

Prices for steel scrap imported into China increased further on Tuesday May 11 after the highest bid price at the bellwether Japan Kanto Tetsugen increased by ?5,899 yen ($54.21) per tonne month on month.The Kanto Tetsugen, which is a cooperative of scrap dealers in the Tokyo region, closed its monthly H2 grade scrap export auction on Tuesday with the highest bid price at ?49,279 ($453) per tonn...Read More

Seaborne iron ore prices went down on Tuesday May 11 due to less market liquidity and weakened sentiment amid China's Dalian Commodity Exchange's risk notice, sources said.Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $228.93 per tonne, down $1.63 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $229.81 per tonne, down $2.80 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $200.07 p...Read More

Seaborne coking coal prices surged sharply in the cfr market due to active speculative buying interest and inched higher in the fob market following global buying activity on Tuesday May 11, market sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $113.05 per tonne, up $1.42 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $246.35 per tonne, up $11.81 per tonneHard co...Read More

China's Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) issued a risk notice on Monday May 10 amid high volatility in the commodity futures in recent days, with its price limits rising in response to various contracts hitting their daily ceilings on the same day. The DCE said in its notice that it had noticed increased volatility in the futures contracts for coking coal, coke and iron ore due to fundamental chang...Read More

Turkish steel producers took a break from making deep-sea scrap purchases on Monday May 10 after last week's buying spree that raised prices by $39 per tonne week on week, sources told Fastmarkets.At least 10 deep-sea cargoes were booked by Turkish steel producers last week.The most recent deep-sea transaction was a Baltic Sea cargo sold at $488 per tonne cfr on an HMS 1&2 (80:20) basis.Suppliers...Read More

Our bottomless disfaith in experts is validated yet again…These wiseacres informed us April would turn in over one million fresh jobs. How many fresh jobs did April turn in?266,000 - wrong by a factor approaching four - the miss of all misses."This is a big miss that changes how we think about the recovery," moans University of Michigan economist Justin Wolfers.Perhaps it does.Economist Nick...Read More

I see the same question in forums, threads, articles and emails: what can I do to protect myself and my family from whatever lies ahead?Given the uncertainties and extremes that are so evident, recognizing risk is a useful first step, a recognition that is very much out of fashion.If we glance at the charts of margin debt (loans taken against one’s stock portfolio) which is at record highs,...Read More

Is the gold skid over? There are encouraging signs that the answer is yes. And, that's great news for patient gold investors (especially those who bought the lows, as I recommended to my subscribers a few weeks ago).First, some facts. Gold hit an all-time high of $2,069 per ounce on August 6, 2020. Since then, it has been on the skids, despite occasional rallies. The low in this cycle was $1,678 p...Read More

Base metals' prices on the London Metal Exchange recovered on Tuesday May 11 morning, after falling for the first time since the start of the month on Monday amid a rise in inflation fears for United States equities, which meant the Nasdaq index fell to its lowest since March 31."Record high copper, steel and iron ore prices, among other commodities, stoked inflation fears and pushed Wall Street l...Read More

China's domestic rebar prices stopped rising on Tuesday May 11 due to rain sapping demand a day after the market surged, due participants still have a bullish outlook. DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 6,000-6,030 yuan ($934-939) per tonne, unchanged Rain affect parts of eastern China and disrupted construction activity and stalled the transportation of rebar, which resulted in a drop in trading c...Read More

The so-called "Suez Armada" of vessels that were delayed by the unintentional blockage of the Suez Canal has now been processed by the Port of Rotterdam, but the port was still "extremely" busy and there were challenges ahead for the shipping sector, speakers said during the Supply Chain Talks digital event on Wednesday May 5.The blockage of the waterway between March 23 and 29 created havoc for g...Read More

The Cobalt alloy grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lbtrade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparencyinto the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies.Fastmarkets assessed Cobalt...Read More

The Cobalt standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb trade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparencyinto the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies.Fastmarkets assessed Cobalt standard grade,...Read More

The Cobalt standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb trade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparencyinto the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies.Fastmarkets assessed Cobalt...Read More

The Cobalt alloy grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lbtrade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparencyinto the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies.Fastmarkets...Read More

European manganese flake prices climbed above $3,000 per tonne in the week ended Friday May 7 amid tightening prompt inventories and continuing shipping delays.Fastmarkets' price assessment for manganese, 99.7% electrolytic manganese flake, in-whs Rotterdam, rose by 5.3% to $2,900-3,100 per tonne on Friday, up from the mid-week assessment of $2,800-2,900 per tonne. The market was now trading at it...Read More

Most stainless steel sheet prices in the United States rose in May, driven by higher alloy surcharges, while tightening supply has prompted many buyers to seek out new sources to meet their needs, according to market participants.Fastmarkets' monthly price assessment for stainless steel 304 cold-rolled sheet, fob mill US was at $160 per hundredweight ($3,200 per short ton) on Monday May 10, up by...Read More

The European manganese alloys markets extended their rally over the week ended Friday May 7, marking a general run higher in prices since March, trade sources told Fastmarkets.This came against domestic production cuts, strengthening demand from steelmakers and more expensive replacement costs for alloys from overseas, which combined to elicit short-covering.Industry sources reported an increase i...Read More