Lead was the worst performer on the London Metal Exchange at the close on Wednesday February 26, wiping out all gains it made on Tuesday. The three-month lead price closed at $1,817 per tonne, down from $1,858 per tonne the previous day when it had risen by 2%. Forward spreads in LME lead remain in a backwardation but significantly narrower than the previous day. The benchmark cash/three-month spr...Read More

Lead premiums have so far been unaffected by a widening backwardation as Indian consumers continue to buy from the spot market, while European spot zinc demand remains low amid stable premiums after the weakest consumption data in five years was announced for 2019. London Metal Exchange three-month lead spread was in a $54.50-per-tonne backwardation on Tuesday February 25 No sign of physical tight...Read More

The London Metal Exchange three-month copper price fell in the morning of Wednesday February 26, with fresh inflow of 62,335 tonnes across various locations putting pressure on the price.As well, the three-month nickel price failed to maintain Tuesday's gains.Copper's outright price was recently at $5,633.50 per tonne, edging closer to the $5,600-per-tonne support level after closing at $5,685 per...Read More

Domestic prices for cold-rolled coil in Europe were largely stable over the week to Wednesday February 26, with market participants receiving comparable prices for imported material. Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel CRC, domestic, exw Northern Europe was ?,?545-570 ($545-570) per tonne on Wednesday, down by ?,?5 per tonne on the low end of the range from ?,?550-570 per tonne a w...Read More

Domestic steel rebar prices in Europe were unchanged this week due to a lack of both trading activity and demand, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday February 26.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, delivered Northern Europe, was ?,?475-485 per tonne on Wednesday, unchanged week on week.The market was reported to be quiet this week because of public h...Read More

Industrial Metallurgical Holding (IMH) will start maintenance of a blast furnace (BF) at its Tulachermet facility early to reduce rebar supply in March from Tula Steel due to a weak market, the company told Fastmarkets on February 25.Tulachermet, which supplies Tula Steel with pig iron, will stop BF No3 for around a month from late March after previously planning to begin in April. BF No3 has capa...Read More

The mood in the European hot-rolled coil market has been bullish amid a lack of competitive import offers and domestic mills' good order books, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday February 26.Northern EuropeFastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, ex-works Northern Europe was at ?,?483.71 ($525.29) per tonne on Wednesday February 26, down by ?,?0.27 per tonne day on day from ?,?...Read More

The prices for hollow steel sections in Europe were unchanged this week with mills struggling to pass on higher feedstock costs to their customers, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday February 26.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel sections (medium), domestic, delivered Northern Europe, was ?,?620-650 ($673-706) per tonne on Wednesday, unchanged week on week.Despite the rising cost of...Read More

RAPAPORT... Revenue from Rio Tinto's diamond division slid 11% to $619 million in 2019 as prices for rough diamonds weakened, the miner reported Wednesday. The diamond unit recorded a net loss of $21 million, compared with a profit of $118 million a year ago. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) plunged 50% to $151 million.Diamond production fell 8% to 17 mill...Read More

RAPAPORT... De Beers has allowed clients to forgo buying certain rough diamonds at this week's sight, as the coronavirus outbreak has raised concerns about a polished glut.The miner has let sightholders defer purchases of goods that produce the types of polished popular in the Chinese retail market, a source at the sight told Rapaport News Wednesday. The concessions apply to 1- to 2-carat rou...Read More

RAPAPORT... Production at Firestone Diamonds faltered in the second fiscal quarter, as the miner faced a near monthlong power disruption it estimates will cost it $4.6 million.Output from the company's Liqhobong mine in Lesotho fell 39% to 138,000 carats in the three months ending December 31, due to the outage, during which Firestone was unable to operate its processing plant, it said Tuesday. Fo...Read More

RAPAPORT... India's polished-diamond exports dropped 6% to $1.65 billion in January, reflecting a lower average price, even as volumes rose. Rough imports also fell, according to data from the country's Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council. India Trade Data for January 2020Read More

MOSCOW – Russia, as this year's chair of an international body tackling the trade in conflict diamonds, will work to lift restrictions on the export of diamonds from the Central African Republic (CAR), deputy finance minister Alexei Moiseev said on Tuesday.A total ban on diamond exports from CAR was imposed in 2013 but partially lifted in 2016, allowing CAR to resume sales of diamonds fr...Read More

Access our research platformsSign-in to our platforms to access our extensive research, our latest insight, data and analytics and to connect to our industry experts.2020 will see lead transition into a market surplus after several years of significant deficit, according to Wood Mackenzie.Despite total exchange stocks of refined metal remaining near historical lows, softening demand has damaged se...Read More

(IDEX Online) - A power outage halted ore treatment at Firestone's Liqhobong, mine in Lesotho, for almost a month and cost $4.6 million, the company said today. The disruption increased costs in Q2 - $14.90 per tonne treated compared with $10.32 in Q1, according to the quarterly operations update. The number of tonnes treated was reduced to 668,120 (Q1: 963,986 tonnes) and diamond recove...Read More

Access our research platformsSign-in to our platforms to access our extensive research, our latest insight, data and analytics and to connect to our industry experts.All eyes will be on the Indonesian nickel market in 2020.The knives may be out for the country’s nascent stainless industry but the staggering potential for expansion in NPI may reduce the impact of the nickel ore export ban to...Read More

Aim-listed Firestone Diamonds’ share price on the LSE fell by more than 68% on Tuesday after it announced that it planned to delist from the Aim.A general meeting will be convened on March 13 for shareholders to vote on the proposed delisting. Seventy-five per cent of shareholders will need to vote in favour of the delisting.AdvertisementFirestone explained in a circular to shareholders that...Read More

  (IDEX Online) - Experts were surprised to find a lab-grown diamond that had been laser-treated to enhance clarity. It is believed to be the first reported case of an LGD having undergone a treatment associated only with mined stones. Researchers at the Gemological Science International laboratory in Mumbai, India, found the 4.5-ct stone had been drilled to clean out a black inclusion. "Diam...Read More

Access our research platformsSign-in to our platforms to access our extensive research, our latest insight, data and analytics and to connect to our industry experts.So this is Christmas, as John Lennon sang: another year over, and a new one just begun. It is the time of year for taking stock and looking to the future, and in that spirit, I have collected a selection of predictions for 2020 from 1...Read More

Stainless steel scrap prices in the United States were relatively steady over the past week despite a decline in the nickel market."Prices have managed to hang in there despite the huge fall in [London Metal Exchange] nickel," one domestic dealer source said.The monthly average of the LME nickel cash price was at $5.82 per lb through February 25, down by 5.4% from January's average...Read More