Alumina prices soared over 10% on Thursday September 9 to their highest since April 2019 due to increased spot market tightness.Fastmarkets' alumina index, fob Australia, was published at $380.61 per tonne on Thursday, up by 13% from the previous day when the index was just $336.76 per tonne.A deal was concluded at $381.10 per tonne on a fob Western Australia basis for 30,000 tonnes and October lo...Read More
A major copper industry group in Chile has presented an alternative tax reform plan to the government, amid an ongoing legislative process to tap into revenues and retain mining-related capital from the Latin American country's inland given the red metal's price recent rally. On August 31, the Chilean Center for Copper and Mining Studies (Cesco), delivered its own proposal to the Chilean Sena...Read More
Aluminium prices on the London Metal Exchange rose to a new year-to-date high of $2,848 per tonne at the start of the day on Thursday September 9 while nickel strengthened to $20,255 per tonne during an early across-the-board uptrend.Nickel's three-month price is 2.7% higher on Thursday morning than its closing price of $19,713 per tonne on Wednesday. The stainless steel additive's previous year-t...Read More
Base metals prices were higher on the London Metal Exchange but mixed on the Shanghai Futures Exchange this morning, Thursday September 9, but equity markets in Asia-Pacific were weaker with participants once again nervous about possible central bank tapering. Market participants focused on whether the European Central Bank (ECB) will signal it is ready to start tapering - the ECB meets today Bet...Read More
Market sentiment positive. Dealers looking for goods after Las Vegas shows raise expectations for holiday season. Some uncertainty over US labor shortage and inflation that may disrupt upbeat consumer confidence. Manufacturers concerned about supply scarcities ahead of peak trading period. De Beers sees robust demand at $515M Aug. sight. Christie's to auction pair of Marie Antoinette diamond brace...Read More
RAPAPORT... Christie's expects to garner up to $4 million for a pair of diamond bracelets belonging to Marie Antoinette, former queen of France, at its Geneva sale in November.The set, which contains 112 diamonds, will lead the Magnificent Jewels sale, Christie's said Wednesday. The queen originally purchased the bracelets in 1776 for 250,000 livres, a huge sum at that time, the auction house note...Read More
Domestic steel reinforcing bar prices in the United States were flat in the week to Wednesday September 8, while imported rebar prices slipped.Fastmarkets' assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), fob mill US was $49.25 per hundredweight ($985 per short ton) on Wednesday, unchanged since August 11 but up by 68.38% from $29.25 per cwt at the same time last year.US marketMarket participants lar...Read More
RAPAPORT... De Beers' revenues continued to rise at its August rough sale as diamond demand persisted in the most important retail centers, the miner reported this week.Proceeds from the seventh sales cycle of the year came to $515 million, the most since February, the company said Wednesday. That figure was 54% higher than the equivalent period of 2020, when the Covid-19 crisis was still sap...Read More
RAPAPORT... During the recent Las Vegas jewelry shows, I had the opportunity to do something that has been surprisingly inaccessible to me in the more than 14 years I've been covering the industry - I got to try on some jewelry. I attend the shows primarily to assess the economics of the diamond market and to get a sense of sentiment among designers and jewelers. I tend to discuss design on a...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Alrosa bought more diamonds this week from Gokhran, the Russian state repository of precious gems and metals, as it sought to replenish its dwindling inventory.It said it purchased 80 per cent of the rough stones offered at auction on Tuesday but did not disclose the price it paid. It was previously reported that Gokhran would be offering 768,600 carats, worth about $19m, at its Se...Read More
The US Department of Commerce has issued final anti-dumping determinations on steel concrete reinforcing bar from Mexico following an administrative review, the agency said on Thursday September 9.The department determined that rebar from Mexico was sold in the United States at less than normal value during the period of review from November 1, 2018, through October 31, 2019. The following pr...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States returned above $97 per hundredweight ($1,940 per short ton), with market participants projecting that upcoming mill maintenance shutdowns will keep inventories tight.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $97.11 per cwt ($1,942.20 per ton) on Thursday September 9, up by 21 cents (0.22%) from $96.90 per cwt on Wednes...Read More
(IDEX Online) - An historic pair of diamond bracelets that originally belonged to Queen Marie-Antoinette of France could fetch up to $4m at auction.The bracelets (pictured), comprising 112 diamonds will headline Christie Geneva's Magnificent Jewels Auction on 9 November.The Queen, famous for her love of jewelry bought the bracelets in 1776 for for 250,000 livres, a huge sum at the time. ...Read More
(IDEX Online) - De Beers reported provisional rough sales of $515m at its seventh sight of 2021, virtually unchanged from $514m at sixth sight. It said demand in the US and China remained "robust".Sales for Sight 7 last year, in the midst of Covid lockdowns, were $334m. In 2019 the figure was $287m.De Beers said it was still offering extra flexibility to sight holders, and extended the sale in Gab...Read More
International Diamond Exchange Online (IDEX) and One Creation Corporation are announcing a strategic partnership jointly developing the online market data portal directly to the participants in the diamond industry. The diamond trading platform IDEX Online is making its unique database of diamond prices available for the first time. It will be made accessible via a portal to banks, financia...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Europe were fairly stable on Thursday September 9, with buyers and steelmakers employing a "wait-and-see" strategy, sources told Fastmarkets.Negative sentiment prevailed among buyers due to the effects of competitive import offers, lower demand from distributors due to sufficient stocks and anticipated lower volumes purchased by the automotive sector. Additio...Read More
CIS steel billet export prices remained firm on Thursday September 9, supported by surging demand in China, sources told Fastmarkets.Chinese interest in imported billet increased over the past week, along with indications of workable prices from customers, on the expectation that further domestic production cuts will be imposed in China at the start of next year.And CIS billet producers were looki...Read More
Turkish steelmakers remained silent in the deep-sea scrap import market, due to only achieving limited finished long steel sales, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday September 9.The most recent trades were heard on Tuesday, when three steel producers booked four deep-sea cargoes from various locations at between $435 and $445 per tonne cfr on HMS 1&2 (80:20) basis.However, the mills went quiet on...Read More
Traditional relationships between prime steel scrap and lower-grade material in key Asian markets have shattered over recent months, market sources told Fastmarkets in early September 2021.Busheling scrap - which is known as Shindachi in Japan - is a prime scrap grade generated from offcuts from the making of steel sheet-intensive products such as vehicles and white goods. Reduced output at leadin...Read More
Base metals prices were higher on the London Metal Exchange but mixed on the Shanghai Futures Exchange this morning, Thursday September 9, but equity markets in Asia-Pacific were weaker with participants once again nervous about possible central bank tapering.* Market participants focused on whether the European Central Bank (ECB) will signal it is ready to start tapering – the ECB meets toda...Read More