The ferro-chrome price in China has jumped in the week to Friday February 7 after road travel restrictions imposed by the authorities to control the spread of the novel coronavirus led to problems with raw material supply and deliveries of alloy to stainless steel mills.Fastmarkets' price assessment for ferro-chrome, spot 6-8% C, basis 50% Cr, ddp China, was 5,900-6,100 yuan ($844-872) per tonne o...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Monday February 10 that are worth another look.The United States Department of Commerce on February 10 issued affirmative final determinations in its anti-dumping and countervailing duty investigations into imports of carbon and alloy steel threaded rod from China and India.LME Week Asia 2020 could be in doubt due to the coronavirus out...Read More
Chinese multi-metal company Jingchuan Group produced the first batch of nickel chloride from its newly-commissioned high-end nickel salt project on Sunday February 9.The size of the first nickel-chloride yield was not stipulated but the resultant material constitutes part of the group's efforts to ramp up battery-grade nickel production for the much-lauded electric vehicle (EV) boom, according to...Read More
The waiting time to take metal out of London Metal Exchange-approved warehouses across Asia rose at the end of January 2020, according to the latest LME queue report. Fresh queues have emerged at warehouses in South Korea, Malaysia and Singapore due to further cancellations - mainly for aluminium. South Korea In Gwangyang, South Korea, there is an 18-day wait to deliver copper, lead, aluminium and...Read More
Nickel producers in Indonesia continue to operate at full capacity amid China's ongoing Wuhan coronavirus pandemic, but concerns that logistical delays will exacerbate the already poor projections for material demand in 2020 loom large, participants say.Indonesia-based nickel producers including Chinese stainless steel giant Tsingshan and domestic producer PT Antam have confirmed to Fastmarkets th...Read More
The three-month nickel price on the London Metal Exchange was higher during morning trading on Monday February 10, testing support above $13,000 per tonne against moderate turnover, while zinc came under further pressure from continued deliveries. Nickel's outright price on the LME was recently trading at $12,990 per tonne this morning after briefly climbing to an intra-morning high of $13,080 per...Read More
LME Week Asia 2020 could be in doubt due to the coronavirus outbreak, with Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing evaluating all their events taking place over the next few months. "HKEX is currently evaluating all its events over the next few months, given the backdrop of the coronavirus," a London Metal Exchange spokeswoman said. "Where postponements or cancellations are put in place, all relevant parti...Read More
Fastmarkets' copper concentrates treatment and refining charge (TC/RC) index rose to its highest level since October 2019 this week, with Chinese smelters staying on the sidelines amid a murky outlook on production plans and product sales following the coronavirus outbreak. A weekly brief on the Fastmarkets' copper concentrate index: Fastmarkets' copper concentrates TC/RC index ticks up with more...Read More
RAPAPORT... Fancy-color diamond prices fell as a sharp decline in demand for yellows outweighed growth in other hues, according to the Fancy Color Research Foundation (FCRF).The organization's Fancy Color Diamond Index for yellows fell 5.4% year on year in the fourth quarter, while prices for blues rose 0.2%, the FCRF said Monday. Pink fancy-color diamonds inched up 0.1%, with the overall ind...Read More
RAPAPORT... When millennials tuck into their avocado toast, they probably don't realize they're going along with a successful marketing campaign that began decades ago. Sales and prices of the slippery green fruit have soared since the 1990s thanks to subtle efforts by avocado producers to reposition the once-unpopular item as a healthy, trendy food.The diamond industry has gone the opposite way....Read More
Fastmarkets outlines five key takeaways from SteelOrbis' 11th Annual Rebar and Wire Rod Conference that was held in Las Vegas, Nevada on February 3.Panelists included Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America; Philip Bell, president of the Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA); and Vince Pappas, president of Stone Steel Corporation. Steel imports currently sub...Read More
RAPAPORT... Botswana's diamond trade took center stage in the newest episode of a documentary highlighting sustainability in the fashion industry.The Fashionscapes films were created by Livia Firth, wife of actor Colin Firth, and cofounder and creative director of sustainability and communications consultancy Eco-Age. A screening of the film, which Firth created together with director Andrew...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States declined on Monday February 10, with distributors holding off on purchase orders in expectation of lower prices later. Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $29.17 per hundredweight ($583.40 per short ton)on Monday February 10, down by 1.6% from $29.64 per cwt on Friday February 7 and down by 1.9% from $29.75...Read More
Steel plate prices in the United States retreated after ferrous scrap indicators were lower and buyers demonstrated a reluctance to stock up in the face of price hikes in the new year.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel cut-to-length plate carbon grade, fob mill US weakened to $31 per hundredweight ($620 per short ton) on Friday February 7 from $32 per cwt on January 31 - ...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Over the past 10 years, fancy color diamond prices have increased 77 percent. That's according to newly released information from the Fancy Color Research Foundation (FCRF). Tracking the Fancy Color Diamond Index for the past decade shows that the price of pink diamonds has increased 116 percent, blue diamond prices have risen 81 percent and yellow diamond prices ha...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Jewelers Mutual Insurance Company, SI, a member insurer of the Jewelers Mutual Insurance Group, has earned its 33rd consecutive A+ Superior financial strength rating from insurance rating and information source A.M. Best Company.The rating references Jewelers Mutual's strong risk-adjusted capitalization, operating results and liquidity. A.M. Best also considered Jewelers Mutua...Read More
Russian miner Alrosa will hold four auctions in New York this year for rough diamonds weighing more than 10.8 ct.“In general, each auction attracts up to 100 companies from different countries. Auction sales currently account for about 10% of our overall sales,” Alrosa deputy CEO Evgeny Agureev commented in a statement on Friday.AdvertisementThe first auction in New York will be held f...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Russian diamond miner Alrosa has announced that it will hold four auctions in 2020 in New York for rough diamonds weighing over 10.8 carats.The first auction will take place on February 18-28 with results announced in the beginning of March. The following auctions are scheduled for May 11, July 20 and November 16. "In general, each auction attracts up to 100 companies from dif...Read More
Falling scrap costs in Turkey as well as low demand in the major sales outlets negatively affected steel billet producers from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in the first week of February.Chinese customers' cancelling orders stoked negative sentiment in and added pressure to the Asian market.Up to 100,000 tonnesof steel billet initially orderedfor China is now being offered to Southe...Read More
Fastmarkets has amended the publication date of its Brazilian domestic steel price assessments, ex-works Brazil, reais per tonne, following market feedback.The publication of the Brazilian domestic flat steel and rebar price assessments has moved from the first Friday of each month to the second Friday of each month, allowing Fastmarkets to capture price changes more quickly and accurately.The nex...Read More