Mining consulting firm The MSA Group is hoping that the review of Namibia’s Minerals (Prospecting and Mining) Act will enhance the country’s ‘friendliness’ towards mining investors.The MSA Group principal consultant Mike Robertson says the 1992 legislation has been under review since 2018. Although the aim was to implement the legislation last year, it has been delayed, owi...Read More

The impact on Vale from the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) has been limited thus far, but the company is watching the situation closely in China."We are already booked with all our clients for the next 30 days," Vale ferrous and coal executive director Marcelo Spinelli said on Friday February 21. "Our main concern is the possibility of cash restrictions among our clients."On the oth...Read More

The inter-merchant spot market for light iron scrap in the UK was unchanged in the week ended Friday February 21, stable for a second week amid steady demand and regular increases in European scrap export prices, sources have told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel scrap 5C, loose old light, domestic, delivered inter-merchant, UK, was ?70-90 ($90-116) per tonne on Friday....Read More

The price of ferrous scrap imported into India surged this week on freight rate increases and a rising Turkish scrap market, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday February 21.Fastmarkets calculated the steel scrap, shredded, index, import, cfr Nhava Sheva, India, at $303.09 per tonne on Friday, up by $16.13 per tonne from $286.96 per tonne one week ago.Deals for shredded at the start of the week were...Read More

Turkish deep-sea scrap import prices continued to surge on Friday February 21, with mills booking more cargoes for March shipment, sources told Fastmarkets.A steel producer in the Izmir region booked a US cargo comprising 18,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $280 per tonne, 10,000 tonnes of shredded at $285 per tonne and 2,000 tonnes of bonus at $290 per tonne cfr.Another steel mill in the Iskender...Read More

The export market for pig iron from the Commonwealth of Independent States improved during the week ended Thursday February 20 due to continued scrap price increases. Additionally, suppliers have opted to hold back sales, contributing to the bullish mood in the market. "Suppliers apparently put things on hold and are not offering material at this point; they want to wait for better pricing," one b...Read More

Seaborne iron ore prices were rangebound on Friday February 21 with market participants retreating to the sidelines, though trading activity at Chinese ports remained robust.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $92.25 per tonne, up $0.24 per tonne.62% Fe Pilbara Blend fines, cfr Qingdao: $91.58 per tonne, up $0.24 per tonne.62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $93.16 per tonne,...Read More

Aluminium stocks in Shanghai Futures Exchange-approved warehouses increased the most in percentage terms in the week to Friday February 21, with inventories up by 20.9% to 409,635 tonnes.Inbound material mainly came into Zhongchu Wuxi warehouse in Jiangsu province, and Central-China Dry-port warehouse in Henan province, increasing by 33,568 tonnes and 17,803 tonnes, respectively. "Slow...Read More

Artemis all set thanks to unique approachSPONSOREDartemis resourcesIf developed, the cobalt option would make Santo Domingo the fourth largest battery-grade cobalt producer outside of China and the largest in the Americas.Read More

Seaborne coking coal prices moved higher on Friday February 21, in line with the general market direction since the second week of February.Fastmarkets indices Premium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $159.20 per tonne, up $0.91 per tonne Premium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $167.13 per tonne, unchanged Hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $141.63 per tonne, unchanged Hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $149...Read More

Artemis all set thanks to unique approachSPONSOREDartemis resourcesThe permitting issue in the Philippines saw copper sales more than halve to 6,900t while gold sales of 448,400 ounces in 2019 were also down on the 532,716oz sold in 2018.Read More

China's hot-rolled coil prices rose on Friday February 21, particularly in the northern region, which led exporters to raise their offers significantly.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,500-3,520 yuan ($499-501) per tonne, up 10 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tangshan): 3,350-3,380 yuan per tonne, up 80 yuan per tonnePrices in Shanghai edged up, with trading activity rising day by day.But a trade...Read More

Artemis all set thanks to unique approachSPONSOREDartemis resourcesThe dispute concerns taxes paid by the Oyu Tolgoi copper-gold mine between 2013 and 2015.The dispute resolution provisions set out in the 2009 Investment Agreement (IA) and the 2015 underground mine development and financing plan with the Mongolian government call for arbitration under the United Nations Commission on International...Read More

The three-month nickel price on the London Metal Exchange was lower during morning trading on Friday February 21, with its price action now testing support at $12,500 per tonne, while a 14,000-tonne fresh cancelation failed to bolster copper's futures price.Nickel's outright price on the LME was recently at $12,575 per tonne, down some $165 per tonne from Thursday's closing price of $12,670 per to...Read More

China's domestic rebar prices rose on Friday February 21 amid strengthening futures and higher demand, which left some with the impression that the market had bottomed out.Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,420-3,450 yuan ($487-491) per tonne, up 20 yuan per tonne Northern China (Beijing): 3,350-3,380 yuan per tonne, up 20-30 yuan per tonne DomesticMore end users have started working, though so far they...Read More

The equity markets barometer suggests concerns over the economic impact of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) have picked up again over the past 24 hours, with Asian equities weaker this morning, Friday February 21, as are most of the metals.We said on Thursday that markets were focused on coronavirus developments more so than the impact to supply chains, but it seems that traders are now getting m...Read More

An overview of the Chinese minor metals markets in the week to Friday February 21 and the reasons for their latest price moves. Read More

The equity markets barometer suggests concerns over the economic impact of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) have picked up again over the past 24 hours, with Asian equities weaker this morning, Friday February 21, as are most of the metals.We said on Thursday that markets were focused on coronavirus developments more so than the impact to supply chains, but it seems that traders are now getting m...Read More

U.S. equity index futures were lower this morning. S&P 500 futures were down 12 points in pre-opening trade. Index futures were virtually unchanged following release of January Existing Home Sales at 8:30 AM EST. Consensus was a decline to 5.48 million from 5.54 million units in December. Actual was 5.43 million units.Royal Bank (RY $108.00 Cdn.) is expected to open higher after reporting high...Read More

Taiwanese ferrous scrap buyers were scrambling for both containerized and bulk cargoes from the United States and Japan due to materials being diverted to other countries in light of the low prices there.The higher freight costs faced by shippers have also reduced the quantities being offered by sellers.Meanwhile, Vietnamese buyers were not active in the market this week, looking to delay purchase...Read More