China will reduce the provisional import tariff on non-alloyed nickel, unwrought, with harmonized system code of 75021090, from January 1, 2021, the Customs Tariff Commission of China's State Council said on Wednesday December 23. The provisional import tax will be lowered to 1% from 2% at the start of 2021 in a bid to promote imports of the products to meet domestic demand, the commission said in...Read More

Base metals recovered some lost ground in non-descript trading on the morning of Wednesday December 23 on the London Metal Exchange, with zinc rising the most after two days of losses caused by the news of a new Covid-19 variant damaging sentiment.Three-month zinc was up by 1.37% from the Tuesday 5pm close at $2,813 per tonne. The metal had the biggest dip on Tuesday, ending 2% lower at $2,775 per...Read More

Base metals prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mainly lower this morning, Wednesday December 23, while those on the London Metal Exchange were mixed.Metals and broader markets seem to be settling down and oscillating sideways ahead of the Christmas and New Year holidays, suggesting markets are content to consolidate while many cross currents muddy the waters. US President Donald Trump re...Read More

Base metals prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mainly lower this morning, Wednesday December 23, while those on the London Metal Exchange were mixed.Metals and broader markets seem to be settling down and oscillating sideways ahead of the Christmas and New Year holidays, suggesting markets are content to consolidate while many cross currents muddy the waters.US President Donald Trump reb...Read More

Steel reinforcing bar prices in the United States rose to a 32-month high following a second round of mill hikes and an ongoing supply shortage, but were eclipsed by higher import prices. Fastmarkets assessed the price for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), fob mill US at $35.50 per hundredweight ($710 per short ton) on Wednesday December 23, up 2.9% from $34.50 per cwt the week before and the highest...Read More

Imports of finished steel to the United States fell month on month in November due to lower bloom, billet and slab volumes, according to US Census Bureau data.The US imported 1.24 million tonnes of steel products in November, down 9.5% from 1.37 million tonnes in October, preliminary Census data showed.Imports of bloom, billet and slab dropped 27.4% to 170,272 tonnes in November from 234,434 tonne...Read More

U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 8 points in pre-opening trade.Index futures were virtually unchanged following release of economic news at 8:30 AM EST. Consensus for November Durable Goods Orders was an increase of 0.3% versus a gain of 1.3% in October. Actual was an increase of 0.9% Excluding Transportation Orders, consensus for November Durable Goo...Read More

The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.Welded linepipe and OCTG prices have been rising globally despite weak demand - the recent surge in steel and raw material prices forced mills to raise their offers.While new prices were accepted by the available buyers in North America, demand for HSAW and ERW dried up in Europe while customers take a wait-and-see approach....Read More

Deep-sea ferrous scrap cargoes were sold off both US coasts at significantly higher prices over the past week, and global competition for raw materials shows no sign of cooling. Turkey is officially back in the US market, with one sale reported, but some participants have attributed the unusually quiet mood in recent weeks to clandestine deals being conducted quietly in an attempt to keep a lid on...Read More

Turkish steel producers made no deep-sea scrap purchases on Wednesday December 23 although prices remained firm thanks to the support of strong steel and billet values, sources said.Late on December 21, a steel mill in northern Turkey booked a Baltic Sea cargo comprising 12,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20), 6,000 tonnes of plate & structural scrap (P&S) and 5,000 tonnes of a mixture of busheling and...Read More

Seaborne iron prices fell further on Wednesday December 23, in response to the downtrend in futures and rising rebar inventories in northern China.Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $162.03 per tonne, down $2.50 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $162.36 per tonne, down $2.71 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $151.54 per tonne,...Read More

Sellers of Japanese scrap are looking to the domestic market instead of exports because of the higher margins that can be found there, market participants told Fastmarkets on Wednesday December 23.The massive increases in domestic scrap purchase prices by major Japanese mini-mill Tokyo Steel have also supported sentiment.The price-benchmark setter increased its purchase price for the 10th time in...Read More

Demand for Turkish steel remains robust in export destinations despite the recent strengthening of trading regulations, speakers at Fastmarkets' Middle East Iron and Steel virtual conference Turkey panel session on Thursday December 17 said.On November 13, the European Commission (EC) made imports of hot-rolled flat steel from Turkey subject to registration upon arrival into the European Union; an...Read More

Seaborne premium hard coking coal and hard coking coal cfr prices jumped on the latest transactions on Wednesday December 23. Fastmarkets indices Premium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $103.76 per tonne, up $1.08 per tonne Premium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $195.76 per tonne, up $5.56 per tonne Hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $90.05 per tonne, unchanged Hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $185 per tonne...Read More

China resuming steel scrap imports in 2021 will directly affect global steel markets because of supply shortages, speakers on the Turkey panel at Fastmarkets' recent Middle East Iron and Steel virtual conference said. China will end the ban on imports of ferrous scrap on January 1 after it reclassified certain qualities steelmaking raw materials under the new regulations.  On Decemb...Read More

China's domestic rebar prices experienced a sharp retreat on Wednesday December 23 after several days of sharp increases, amid falling futures and weaker demand.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 4,460-4,480 yuan ($681-685) per tonne, down by 220 yuan per tonneThe sharp price increases over the first two days of this week kept demand at a minimum, which led sellers under pressure to destock to slas...Read More

An overview of the consumer electronics markets and their latest price moves.Ewa Manthey, Dalila Ouerghi and Michael Greenfield in London, Susan Zou...Read More

An overview of the specialty steel raw materials markets in Europe and their latest price moves.Charlotte Radford, Cristina Belda and Declan Conway contributed...Read More

Key data from Fastmarkets' pricing session in Europe on Wednesday December 23.Key drivers The ferro-titanium price jumped by more than 5% in the week to Wednesday December 23, reaching a peak last seen in November 2012 when the price range was assessed at $7.90-8.25 per kg.Market activity has slowed close to the end-of-year holiday season, although deals were reported at higher...Read More

The publication of Fastmarkets' cobalt hydroxide payable indicator, min 30% Co, cif China, was delayed on December 23 because of a reporting error. The Fastmarkets price book and database have both since been updated. The affected price is: MB-CO-0021 Cobalt hydroxide payable indicator, min 30% Co, cif China, % payable of Fastmarkets' standard-grade cobalt price (low-end) For more information or t...Read More