Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday June 21 that are worth another look.Work is under way in Fredrikstad, Norway, to build a plant that will be key to electric vehicle (EV) transportation in Europe. The final touches are being made to Fredrikstad's Hydrovolt factory, a joint venture between aluminium producer Norsk Hydro and battery producer Northvolt that will recycl...Read More

Work is under way in Fredrikstad, Norway, to build a plant that will be key to electric vehicle (EV) transportation in Europe.The final touches are being made to Fredrikstad's Hydrovolt factory, a joint venture between aluminium producer Norsk Hydro and battery producer Northvolt that will recycle 8,000 tonnes of EV batteries per year when ramped up - making it one of Europe's top p...Read More

The price of nickel was the best performer among base metals on the London Metal Exchange on Monday June 21 on account of a softer US Dollar Index, with all prices rebounding during afternoon trading after the sharp selling in the week ended June 18.Nickel rose by the most, up by 1.7% to $17,450 per tonne at 5pm compared with its closing price on Friday of $17,154 per tonne, which was a 7.2% drop...Read More

Iron ore prices fell across the board on Monday June 21 because limited demand for steel weakened sentiment for the steelmaking raw material, sources said. Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $208.15 per tonne, down $10.75 per tonne 62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $210.00 per tonne, down $10.24 per tonne 58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $175.53 per tonne, do...Read More

Singapore's DBS has commenced trading as a Category 4 member on the London Metal Exchange, the bank said on Monday June 21.It is the first bank in Asia to have a remote membership with the LME outside of London, it said."With the new membership, DBS' corporate clients in Singapore, China, India, Indonesia, Korea and Hong Kong will have access to a comprehensive suite of hedging and financial solut...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.Copper will play a pivotal role in the energy transition. Aluminium may be an abundant and cheap competitor for electrification applications, but carbon footprint issues for primary metal may give copper the edge. Ultimately that poin...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.Demand for copper — already on a rising trend — is arguably set to explode as the energy transition takes hold. In order to prevent structural deficits, unsustainably high prices and demand destruction, miners will have to...Read More

Work is under way in Fredrikstad, Norway, to build a plant that will be key to electric vehicle (EV) transportation in Europe.The final touches are being made to Fredrikstad's Hydrovolt factory, a joint venture between aluminium producer Norsk Hydro and battery producer Northvolt that will recycle 8,000 tonnes of EV batteries per year when ramped up - making it one of Europe's top p...Read More

RAPAPORT... Diacore has revealed that it was the buyer of a 204.36-carat, yellow diamond that sold for $5 million at Christie's New York earlier this month.Known as the Dancing Sun, the VVS2-clarity stone is the largest polished diamond of North American origin, the dealer and manufacturer said last week. It was cut from a 552.74-carat rough unearthed at the Diavik mine in Canada in 2018. Chr...Read More

RAPAPORT... Sotheby's will auction a massive flawless diamond valued at up to $15 million next month, making the rare move of accepting payment in cryptocurrency. The pear-shaped, 101.38-carat, D-color diamond, known as The Key 10138, will feature in a single-lot live auction in Hong Kong on July 9, Sotheby's said Monday. The diamond is the first jewelry piece for which the company is accepting di...Read More

RAPAPORT... Alrosa's shareholders elected a new supervisory board last week, with independent directors now accounting for a third of the team.The number of independent members in the 15-person board grew to five from three following a vote at an annual general meeting on June 16, the miner said Thursday.At its next meeting, the board will select the new chairman and appoint members to compan...Read More

The domestic market for flat steel in Russia's Central Federal District around Moscow was largely stable in the week to Monday June 21, with most sources expecting either a rollover or even a downward correction in the short term, Fastmarkets heard.Buying activity in the region slowed, partially affected by a weaker export market and unclear sentiment.A new spike in the numbers of Covid-19 cases i...Read More

(IDEX Online) - Two friends of an illegal diamond panner in Zimbabwe have admitted murdering him 12 years ago - after being haunted by his "avenging spirit".They have finally revealed that Welldone Mutangabende was not the crushed in a mineshaft collapse in the Marange diamond fields, as it had appeared at the time.John Muchinganwa and Willard Kushanya have now admitted staging the "accident" afte...Read More

(IDEX Online) - The stones that triggered a "diamond rush" last week in South Africa are nothing more than worthless quartz, say officials.An estimated 3,000 fortune seekers converged on fields outside KwaHlathi, in KwaZulu-Natal province, armed with picks, shovels and forks after word spread on social media.A team of geoscientists and mining experts confirmed yesterday that the stones were quartz...Read More

(IDEX Online) - It started as an April Fool's joke - but Tiffany & Co really is replacing its iconic robin-egg blue with a bright yellow house color. At least in some locations, and for a limited period.The Rodeo Drive store, in Beverly Hills (pictured) has had a (temporary) yellow makeover and selected outlets globally will follow suit.Tiffany & Co fooled some of its Instagram f...Read More

The refined zinc and lead markets were in relative balance over January to April, with both metals notching small surpluses, the International Lead and Zinc Study Group (ILZSG) said on June 21.Supply exceeded demand for refined zinc by 31,000 tonnes in the first four months of 2021, while lead's surplus...Read More

Russian based mining company Norilsk Nickel (Nornickel) will begin to ship the first batches of carbon-neutral nickel to customers in the coming weeks, the company said on Monday June 21.The company announced that they are taking steps to mitigate their carbon footprint, which includes efforts to cut CO2 emissions across the whole production chain as well as upgrading and investing in energy moder...Read More

Lundin Mining has cut its expectation for copper produced at its Candalaria mine in Chile by 13.8%, and output may be affected for years to come, the company said on June 21.Candalaria's copper output will be 150,000-155,000 tonnes in 2021, down from a previous forecast of 172,000-182,000 tonnes, the company said. At 85,000-90,000 ounces, gold production will be down by 10.3%.Taking the high-end o...Read More

Nickel was the only metal to show a slight increase in morning trading on the London Metal Exchange on Monday June 21, with all other base metals prices continuing to decline.Nickel's price was$17,285 per tonne at 9am on Monday, up 0.8% from Friday's closing price of$17,154 per tonne.On Friday, however, the nickel price was down 7.2% from last Monday's close of $18,480 per tonne, with only co...Read More

The price of nickel sulfate in China widened downward in the week to Friday June 18, amid falling nickel prices on the London Metal Exchange, leaving market sentiment cautious, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' price assessment for nickel sulfate min 21%, max 22.5%, cobalt 10ppm max, exw China, was 33,000-34,000 yuan ($5,102-5,256) per tonne on June 18, down by 500 yuan per tonne (0.7%) from 3...Read More