Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Tuesday October 29 that are worth another look.The decline in Asian hot-rolled coil prices has continued to apply downward pressure on slab prices in the region, sources told Fastmarkets.The copper market is largely shrugging off the positive price effects of supply constraints and is focusing its attention on the negative consequences...Read More

A summary of base metals premiums from across the globe for the week to Tuesday October 29.Please click...Read More

Brazilian company Atlantic Nickel has resumed operations at its Santa Rita mine in the northeastern state of Bahia, and is producing concentrates at the site, owner Appian Capital Advisory said on Monday October 28.At the same time, Atlantic Nickel is finishing the drilling campaign for an underground mine phase, and is expected to update its reserve calculation statement during the first quarter...Read More

The copper market is largely shrugging off the positive price effects of supply constraints and is focusing its attention on the negative consequences on growth of the trade wars, the chief executive officer of Freeport-McMoRan has said.As long as this remains the case, copper prices appear unlikely to strengthen significantly, although a return to a more stable and positive relationship between C...Read More

Indonesian officials said on Tuesday October 29 that their country's ban on the export of nickel ore will begin in January 2020, as previously scheduled, once a review of irregular ore exporting practices is concluded.This reverses reports on October 28 that the ban would begin with immediate effect.The review is likely to be finished in a week or two, Luhut Pandjaitan, Indonesia's coordinating mi...Read More

RAPAPORT... The media tycoon who recently bought Sotheby's has appointed a senior executive from his business empire as the auction house's new CEO.Charles Stewart will assume the role with immediate effect, having served as copresident and chief financialofficer of Patrick Drahi's Altice USA since 2016. He helped lead that company's successful $2.1billion initial public offering in 2017...Read More

RAPAPORT... Luk Fook's same-store sales fell 37% in the second fiscalquarter amid a decrease in inbound tourism due to escalating Hong Kong protestsand the impact of the US-China trade war. Total same-store sales - at Luk Fook outlets open for morethan a year - in Hong Kong and Macau dropped 39% in the three months endingSeptember 30. Same-store gold sales plunged 46%, while gem-set-jewelrypu...Read More

Most flat steel import prices in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia were stable this week amid limited demand, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday October 29.Buyers were reluctant to book large tonnages due to falling prices as well as weak end-user demand, they said.UAEOffer prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) from China were heard in the UAE at $440-450 per tonne cfr this week, wit...Read More

RAPAPORT... Gem Diamonds has recovered a diamond weighing 161carats from its Let??eng mine in Lesotho. The miner found the "high-quality" white, type IIa stone onOctober 28, it said. Including this rough, Gem Diamonds has retrieved five white stones over 100 carats this year. It also produced a further three of that size in other colors. In 2018, the mine, known for its large, high-quality st...Read More

RAPAPORT... The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) has appointedMark Buntz senior vice president and chief marketing officer, to drive thefuture of the organization's brand. A marketing veteran with more than 20 years of experience inglobal brand marketing, advertising, communications, sales and broadcasting,Buntz is tasked with supporting the expansion of the GIA's education,laboratory s...Read More

RAPAPORT... US women increasingly buy engagement rings forthemselves, and spend more on them than their partners do, De Beers said Mondayin its annual Diamond Insight Report. The proportion of engagement rings financed solely by brides rose to 14% in 2017 from 11% in 2015 and 7% in 2013, accordingto the report. The trend reflects growth in female purchasing power, one ofseveral social changes impa...Read More

Import prices for steel billet in the United Arab Emirates increased over the past week, while domestic and import rebar values decreased, market sources said on Tuesday October 29.Domestic prices for rebar for the month were announced by the country's producers on October 21. Both Emirates Steel and Conares Steel kept their prices unchanged.Billet importsOne billet booking was made from Oman at a...Read More

(IDEX Online) - Tiffany & Co. has confirmed it has received an unsolicited, non-binding proposal from LVMH Moet Hennessy - Louis Vuitton to acquire it for $120 per share in cash.The luxury jeweler said that while the two sides are not in discussion, its Board of Directors is reviewing the proposal to determine the best course of action for the company and its shareholders. According to a...Read More

(IDEX Online) - New research by the De Beers Group in its latest Diamond Insight Report reveals the increasing role women are taking in purchasing engagement rings. According to the research, the share of U.S. women buying their own engagement ring doubled from 7 percent to 14 percent within a five-year period.The research also found that when women buy their own diamond engagement ring they spend...Read More

(IDEX Online) - Diamond explorer Botswana Diamonds has announced that its associate Vutomi Mining Pty Ltd has received a mining permit for the iconic Marsfontein Mine. The permit covers the mine's diamond-bearing gravels and unprocessed stockpiles.The mine, which comprises a kimberlite blow, operated for two years in the late 1990s with a pay-back of its entire development cost in less than f...Read More

Export prices for hot-rolled and cold-rolled coil from the Commonwealth of Independent States continued to fall during the week ended Monday October 28, although market sources told Fastmarkets they doubted the market could decline much further. Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel HRC export, fob Black Sea, CIS  was $360-375 per tonne on October 21, down from $375-385 per tonne a week ear...Read More

LONDON - Anglo American unit De Beers said its 2019 marketing budget will exceed last year's figure of $170-million and will focus on the biggest market the United States, where women lavishing diamonds on themselves has boosted sales.While US demand has held firm, the diamond market has weakened elsewhere and trade tensions and protests in Hong Kong have dented sales in China, the second larg...Read More

A new Singapore Steel Forum will kick off for the first time next year as part of Singapore Iron Ore Week (SIOW) 2020.Fastmarkets will drive the forum together with the Singapore Exchange (SGX) and Enterprise Singapore as part of an expanded SIOW, which will be held on May 18-21 2020 at Sands Expo & Convention Centre. The Singapore Steel Forum will be held on May 20 and will include global steelma...Read More

Chinese steelmakers kept their export offers for hot-rolled coil unchanged on Tuesday October 29 amid a stable domestic market.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,500-3,520 yuan ($495-498) per tonne, unchangedNorthern China (Tangshan): 3,500 yuan per tonne, unchangedSteady demand kept domestic prices unchanged during the day.A Shanghai-based trader thinks demand will be sustained for several days...Read More

Golden Mile goes back to the futureSPONSOREDgolden mile resourcesThe Newcrest Mining and BHP-backed company has been conducting metallurgical testwork ahead of a prefeasibility study, due out in the March quarter of 2020, resulting in improvements in copper, goldRead More