Chinese steelmakers are rushing to export their products due to stagnant domestic demand caused by downstream industries struggling to return to work amid the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) outbreak in China.Hebei-based Anfeng Iron & Steel, a mill that had previously focused heavily on domestic sales, exported tens of thousand tonnes of hot-rolled coil in early February, a Shanghai-based trader sai...Read More

The three-month zinc price on the London Metal Exchange was lower at the close of trading on Thursday February 20, falling by more than 1% but holding above the nearby support level, while nickel failed to reduce its losses despite low turnover.Zinc's outright price on the LME closed at $2,112 per tonne in the afternoon, with daily trading volumes the second-highest across the base-metals complex...Read More

Alumina prices on an fob Australia basis have gone up over the past week due to a high-priced deal for material destined for China, but market participants were still searching for clarity on market conditions on Thursday February 20.Fastmarkets calculated the daily alumina index, fob Australia, at $289.84 per tonne on Thursday, up from $281.69 per tonne a week earlier.It was now at its highest le...Read More

Trading activity involving second-tier seaborne coking coal pushed up prices on Thursday February 20, though doubts lingered over recent strength of the market.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $158.29 per tonne, unchangedPremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $167.13 per tonne, up $0.19 per tonneHard coking coal, fob DBCT: $141.63 per tonne, up $8.13 per tonneHard coking coa...Read More

Copper has attempted to rebound since early September following a marked sell-off in the summer months where macro and fundamental forces have been prevalent.On the macro front, copper has benefited from a slight easing in US-China trade tensions and more monetary policy easing across the globe - including China, where copper consumption is the most exposed - that has shored up investor sentiment....Read More

The increasing consumption of scrap and a potential shift toward the electric-arc furnace (EAF) steelmaking route from the basic oxygen furnace (BOF) route in China are medium- to long-term threats to demand for steelmaking raw materials, while in the near team coking coal import volumes will continue to be affected by iron ore procurement strategies.This was the basis of Fastmarkets research team...Read More

European refined zinc consumption fell to a five-year low in 2019, with refined production down to a three-year low, according to data released by the International Lead Zinc Study Group (ILZSG).Refined zinc consumption in Europe totaled 2.348 million tonnes in 2019, down by 81,000 tonnes or 3.3% from 2018, according to the ILZSG. Production in the continent came to...Read More

As part of U.S. President Donald Trump's proposed federal budget for fiscal 2021, his administration is requesting US$150 million annually over the next decade to stockpile U.S.-mined uranium in a new national uranium reserve.The move is designed to prop up domestic production as a matter of national energy security and re-establish the country's nuclear fuel supply chain.Trump's "Budget for Ameri...Read More

Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Northern Europe have been fairly stable due to limited trading activity, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday February 20.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, ex-works Northern Europe, was ?,?481.07 ($519.45) per tonne on Thursday February 20, down by ?,?0.18 per tonne from ?,?481.25 per tonne on February 19.The index was calculated based...Read More

China slowdown affecting global sentiment. Diamond markets quiet as coronavirus reduces value across the supply chain. Chinese and Hong Kong jewelers remain closed and lack of Chinese tourism likely to impact European and US luxury brands. US retailers consider short-term alternatives to Chinese suppliers. Diamantaires concerned about delayed payments from Hong Kong buyers. Reduced demand leading...Read More

Copper output by global miner Anglo American was down slightly in 2019, which the company attributed to the year being one of the driest on record in Chile, it said on Thursday February 20.Output of the red metal dropped by 5% year-on-year to 638,000 tonnes, compared with 668,300 tonnes a year earlier, according to Anglo's 2019 results statement.Production by the Los Bronces copper asset shrank by...Read More

The three-month nickel price on the London Metal Exchange was lower during morning trading on Thursday February 20, with price action pressured by continued inflows of material into LME-registered warehouses, while aluminium futures neared the $1,700-per-tonne support level. Nickel's outright price on the LME was recently at $12,760 per tonne, a drop of some 0.7% from Wednesday's closing price of...Read More

Sentiment low owing to tight liquidity and slow polished demand. Buyers seeking discounts and looking for desperate sellers. Dealers maintaining weak 1H outlook, with concerns Chinese jewelers will return large volume of unsold goods. US supporting the market and showing steady interest in 1 ct., G-J, VS2-I1 diamonds. IIJS Signature fair signals shift to lighter-weight wedding jewelry due to high...Read More

Equity markets remain buoyant in Asia, but pre-market western equity indices have started to weaken, while metals are mixed this morning, Thursday February 20.It seems as though equities are focused on how well the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) is being contained, while the metals are taking a more cautious stance as they wait for the market to assess the impact on supply and demand. Indeed, given...Read More

RAPAPORT... With the coronavirus dominating headlines since late January, the Rapaport Diamond Podcast looks at its potential impact on the diamond and jewelry market - spanning the retail sector, manufacturers and miners. In addition, Rapaport Senior Analyst Avi Krawitz sums up the mood at the recent International Diamond Week in Israel and outlines the panel on traceability that he moderated at...Read More

The Shanghai Futures Exchange will delist the Norilsk Combine H-1 brand of refined nickel cathode produced by Russia's Nornickel, effective from March 17, 2020, the bourse announced on Tuesday February 18.That same day, the SHFE said it approved another of Nornickel's brands - produced on the Kola Peninsula in Siberia and called simply Nornickel - to be physically deliverable against its nickel fu...Read More

RAPAPORT... Signet Jewelers has introduced its first foreign-language advertising campaigns in the US market, targeting the growing number of Hispanic millennials expected to marry in the coming years."They are a big customer group, and getting a lot bigger given the disproportionately high portion of the millennial population that Hispanics constitute," Signet executive vice president and ch...Read More

RAPAPORT... Swiss watch exports rose in January as demand in the US continued to increase, propelling the country past Hong Kong to become the largest importer of the luxury product.Shipments to all countries grew 9% to CHF 1.79 billion ($1.82 billion) in January, the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry reported Thursday. That figure mainly reflects a 15% increase in exports to the US, whi...Read More

RAPAPORT... De Beers gave a positive outlook for 2020 due to an improvement in the industry's inventory situation, despite growing concerns about Chinese demand.Early data from the holiday season indicate midstream stock levels are more balanced than they were, the company reported Thursday in parent company Anglo American's annual financial results. The miner maintained its production foreca...Read More

RAPAPORT... New York-based diamond collector and wholesaler L.J. West has purchased a 6.21-carat fancy-intense-pink-purple diamond from Alrosa.The stone, one of three the Russian miner cut and polished from a 20.18-carat rough it found in one of its Yakutia mines in 2017, was purchased directly from Alrosa, L.J. West owner Larry West said. A diamond of its color is generally only found in Rus...Read More