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

An overview of the minor metals markets and the reasons for their latest price moves.Read More

An overview of the noble alloys markets and the reasons for any price moves.Read More

Access our research platformsSign-in to our platforms to access our extensive research, our latest insight, data and analytics and to connect to our industry experts.The most important driver of the zinc market in 2020 will be the performance of the world’s zinc smelting industry, according to Wood Mackenzie.The easing of trade tensions between the US and China, the struggling manufacturing...Read More

The Fastmarkets copper concentrate treatment and refining charge (TC/RC) index dropped to its lowest level since the start of 2020 in the week ended Friday May 1. The benchmark index fell to $52.20 per tonne / 5.22 cents per lb on Friday, from $54.90 per tonne / 5.49 cents per lb a week ago. A Los Pelambres tender was awarded to a trader at TC/RCs in the low $40s per tonne during the week. Ahead o...Read More

Spot trading interest in blister copper was unusually high in April with both smelters and traders looking for units to fill a supply gap arising from delayed African shipments, sending the refining charge (RC) to the lowest level in over two years. Fastmarkets assessed the RC for 98-99% blister copper cif China at $117-132 per tonne on April 30, down from $130-140 per tonne at the end of Mar...Read More

The global tin market is experiencing a glut of supply entering the market amid coronavirus-related uncertainty, Fastmarkets understands.But even with global verifiable tin stocks now estimated to be at approximately seven days' consumption, many participants believe the industry's meagre demand conditions could cripple the tin market for the remainder of the year.Meanwhile, the prospective resump...Read More

Weda Bay Nickel, the Indonesia-based joint venture between French multi-metal miner Eramet, Chinese stainless steel giant Tsingshan and regional miner PT Antam went into the early stages of production on Thursday April 30, Eramet announced on the same day.Weda Bay, located on the country's Halmahera Island, will supply nickel to local ferro-alloys plants for stainless steel production and has an e...Read More

The sharp decline in emerging market currencies combined with a collapse in oil prices are providing a twin saving grace for many metals and mining companies during the Covid-19 pandemic. For producers of energy-intensive metals like aluminium, and in particular the low-cost ones, the benefit is even greater. It's an emerging trend that is starting to be reflected in the earnings of corporates in...Read More

(IDEX Online) - Polished diamond prices for April were largely in line with last month, with only small fluctuations and little in the way of dramatic movement.  The majority of both rounds and fancies remained unchanged.  Movement across the board was a mix of modest rises and falls, rarely above three per cent.HIGHLIGHTS Rounds 0.50-0.69 ct. G-I / VVS1&nbs...Read More

JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) ­– Diamond mining and marketing company De Beers on Wednesday announced a $200 000 donation across its four producer partner countries of Botswana, Canada, Namibia and South Africa to assist women’s shelters and support organisations to respond to an increase in gender-based violence resulting from Covid-19.Mining Weekly can report that the donation...Read More

Aurubis' attempts to get regulatory approval for its takeover of secondary copper-tin smelter Metallo continue, Europe's largest copper smelter said, with the decision delayed in the midst of Covid-19 uncertainty.The Germany-based company has been attempting to gain antitrust regulatory approval for a ?,?380 million ($424 million) takeover of Belgian-Spanish recycler Metallo Chimique since May las...Read More

One day after dropping below $22 per hundredweight ($440 per short ton), hot-rolled coil prices in the United States have rebounded above $23 per cwt ($460 per ton) while domestic mills are reportedly staying firm on their latest price increase efforts.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $23.67 per cwt ($473.40 per ton) on Friday May 1, up by 8.1...Read More

Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Europe were largely stable day on day on Friday Monday 1, but sentiment in the market remains negative, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, ex-works Northern Europe, was ?,?425.63 ($463.83) per tonne on Friday May 1, down by ?,?0.08 per tonne from ?,?425.71 per tonne on April 30.Friday's index was calculated base...Read More

Demand for CIS-origin billet mainly came from the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) region this week, sources told Fastmarkets Friday May 1.By the end of the week, Fastmarkets had heard of three deals to the region, with the latest being a 50,000-tonne billet cargo sold to a customer in Saudi Arabia at around $360 per tonne cfr (or $335 per tonne fob Black Sea, excluding freight costs...Read More

Russia's largest steelmaker, Novolipetsk Steel (NLMK) forecasts that the share of its sales that goes to exports will increase to 72% in May, compared with 54% in March and 52% in February, according to a financial report released by the company on Thursday April 30.In April, the share of export sales from NLMK's Russia Flat Steel Division and Long Steel Division reached 61%. These divisions inclu...Read More

Evraz's steel product output at its CIS-based assets surged by 9.3% year on year to 3.12 million tonnes in January-March 2020.The assets - West Siberian Iron & Steel Works (ZSMK) Nizhniy Tagil Iron & Steel Works (NTMK) and Evraz Caspian Steel - specialize in production of semi-finished steel products as well as railway and construction products.Of the total, NTMK produced 1,03 million tonnes...Read More

With competition in the global steel markets remaining fierce, Fastmarkets provides an update on the new, progressing and closed trade cases from around the world in April 2020.The case list below includes only updates. For other continuing cases...Read More

Artemis all set thanks to unique approachSPONSOREDartemis resourcesIt is a much needed boost for Kopore, which had just $89,000 cash at the end of March, and will allow it to concentrate on its holdings in Botswana.Read More