Key data from Fastmarkets' pricing session in Europe on Wednesday December 18.Key driversThe price range of alloy has narrowed over the past week, with the low end moving up as sources reported deals done towards the upper end and with previous lows disappearing.Producers and traders are preparing for renewed demand in January in expectation of consumers in the steel sector and other usage areas.T...Read More

Gary ChristensonThe official US national debt in 1913 was $2.91 billion. In 1971, when President Nixon lied about temporarily disconnecting gold from the dollar, the official national debt was $398 billion.By 2019 the official national debt has grown to $23,000 billion.Politicians borrow and spend to reward cronies and buy votes. They also increase their personal wealth. Human nature changes slo...Read More

By: Robert LambourneTuesday, December 17, 2019In the past two months the Bank for International Settlements, which represents most central banks in the world, has nearly doubled its gold swaps and derivatives position, the bank's October and November statements of account show.The BIS uses gold swaps and other gold derivatives to gain access to gold held by commercial banks. As of November 30 th...Read More

By: Avi Gilburt, ElliottWaveTraderI know that many investors follow correlations as if they were gospel. But, do they really understand what a correlation represents?You see, markets are not linear in nature. While two different markets may be traveling in the same direction for a period of time, unless you understand each chart on its own, how will you ever know when a seeming correlation will...Read More

By: Ira EpsteinGold bias remains still to the downside. Daily gold chart shows drifting sideways for a very long time:Read More

Gold will break free from $1470-$1490 trading range and form a new range. Silver will break free from $1660-$1750 and form a new range. Copper and crude oil need to trade over current price to be in bullish zone. Trump and his impeachment related news and the US political drama needs to be closely watched. Do not ignore economics. 2019 will go down as the year where voters have given a larger th...Read More

Brazilian flat steel producers are seeking price increases of around 5-8% in 2020 annual contract talks with automakers, according to several market participants.Automotive producers in Brazil are usually supplied under annual contracts. "Steelmakers are trying to apply price increases of 5.5-7% to carmakers," Inda president Carlos Loureiro said on Tuesday December 17.Another market participant sa...Read More

Fastmarkets' Middle East Iron and Steel 2019 event brought together hundreds of the region's top industry executives for meetings, panels, seminars and more this month in Dubai.Delegates left the conference armed with valuable insight to better navigate the industry waters made turbulent by safeguards and other protectionist policies. Participants heard calls from the Turkish steel industry for a...Read More

Global trade's main problem is a lack of fair play rather than a lack of fair trade, Ugur Dalbeler, a board member of the Turkish Iron & Steel Producers' Association (T???oeD), said during his presentation at Fastmarkets' Middle East Iron and Steel Conference in Dubai.Several countries and regions are bypassing the World Trade Organization's (WTO) regulations, Dalbeler - also the chief executive o...Read More

The re-election of incumbent Indonesian President Joko Widodo for a second five-year term has made market participants optimistic about an upswing in steel demand from 2020 after market conditions disappointed in 2019. "I expect steel demand to improve next year when the uncertainty in the market fades with the resumption of existing infrastructure developments and the launch of fresh projects," a...Read More

Domestic wire rod prices in the United States have continued on a slow and steady climb following recent mill increases, although activity remains muted headed into the end of the year, sources said. Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel wire rod (low carbon) industrial quality, fob mill US rose to $29.25-30.25 per hundredweight ($585-605 per short ton) on Tuesday December 17, up by 0.8% from $2...Read More

The price of steel mesh-quality wire rod in the Northern and Southern European domestic markets narrowed upwards, with sellers consolidating recent price increases, sources told Fastmarkets. Sellers had previously managed to push through partial increases based on rising ferrous scrap cost; this week they were able to replicate this across their customer bases. Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment...Read More

The price range of steel rebar in the Northern European domestic market widened this week, with activity winding down ahead of the usual end-of-year holiday period, Fastmarkets heard on Wednesday December 18. Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, delivered Northern Europe was ?,?470-490 ($524-546) per tonne on Wednesday, compared with ?,?475-485 per...Read More

An overview of the minor metals markets and their latest price moves.Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday December 18 that are worth another look.Brazilian flat steel producers are seeking price increases of around 5-8% in 2020 annual contract talks with automakers, according to several market participants.The United States and China reaching a partial trade agreement elicited a muted response from metals markets this week.Mangane...Read More

A string of long-term deals for cobalt hydroxide show that bullish forecasts for cobalt consumption from the electric vehicle (EV) sector are coming into play. Glencore will supply battery manufacturer SK Innovation with up to 30,000 tonnes of cobalt contained in hydroxide over six years, it said last week - a deal worth about $1 billion in today's market. And other deals also point...Read More

If you are a producer or consumer, or are active in the physical markets, then you had better be aware of a new set of regulations that will make it all the more important for you to choose the right logistics partner from next year.The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has ruled that from January 1, 2020, the marine sector will have to reduce sulfur emissions by more than 80% by switching...Read More

Most major aluminium producers agree that tackling the carbon intensity of the smelting process is one of the biggest challenges facing their industry. What they cannot agree on is how to deal with the situation, as a lively panel hosted by Fastmarkets during LME Week at the end of October showed. Aluminium smelting is an energy-intensive business and the market is starting to differentiate b...Read More

A summary of London Metal Exchange warrant premiums from across the globe for the week to Wednesday December 18.Please click...Read More

Seaborne prices for hard coking coal rose in the cfr China segment on Wednesday December 18 while those for premium products were largely stable, with support coming from a pickup in China's domestic market.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $135.67 per tonne, up $1.51 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $147.33 per tonne, unchangedHard coking coal, fob DBCT: $122....Read More