The London Metal Exchange three-month copper price fell by 0.6% at the close of trading on Tuesday October 8 to $5,682 per tonne compared with $5,722 per tonne the previous day despite a doubling of lots traded from this morning, with just shy of 16,500 lots having changed hands by the afternoon kerb. The red metal's LME three-month price has ignored a 4,800 tonne outflow from LME-approved warehou...Read More

Physical iron ore prices rose on Tuesday October 8 on likely easing production restrictions in north China.Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $94.77 per tonne, up $1.39 per tonne.  62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines, cfr Qingdao: $94.05 per tonne, up $1.14 per tonne.62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $93.50 per tonne, up $1.78 per tonne. 58% Fe fines high-premium, cfr Qingdao...Read More

China's hot-rolled coil prices weakened on Tuesday October 8 after the market resumed trading following the country's Golden Week amid expectations of rising supply.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,610-3,620 yuan ($505-506) per tonne, down 10 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tangshan): 3,560 yuan per tonne, down 20 yuan per tonneSellers lowered their prices in response to a declining futures marke...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

Gold settled lower Monday to post back-to-back declines, as investors watched developments in Sino-American trade talks. U.S. and Chinese officials, including Vice Premier Liu He, are expected to resume trade discussions on Oct. 10-11. However, reports over the weekend indicate that Beijing delegates may be aiming to offer a narrower trade resolution than the Trump administration is hoping. "It i...Read More

Poor demand continues to weigh on Indian silico-manganese prices. Indian silico-manganese prices now down for six weeks runningEuropean alloy prices hold steady in thin tradingManganese ore prices keep sliding on poor demand, plentiful supplyUS prices remain flat in inactive market. Indian silico-manganese export prices dropped for a sixth consecutive week due to persistent weak demand domesticall...Read More

The import price for steel billet in the United Arab Emirates has narrowed over the past week and both import and domestic prices for rebar have fallen slightly, with demand for products only moderate, sources said on Tuesday October 8.New domestic prices for rebar for the month were announced by the country's producers on September 26. Both Emirates Steel and Conares reduced their prices.Billet i...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Tuesday October 8 that are worth another look.The world's largest copper producer, Codelco, has offered customers in Asia 2020 copper cathode supply with premium levels unchanged from current levels, three informed sources told Fastmarkets.Export prices for Chinese cold-rolled coil and hot-dipped galvanized coil were unchanged duri...Read More

In a series of complaints, US steel and aluminium companies - among others - have alleged that four rail-service providers fixed their prices, overcharging customers by billions of dollars over a five-year period."In 2003, the four largest United States-based Class I railroads engaged in an extraordinary series of meetings, phone calls and email communications through which they embarked on a cons...Read More

Zijin Mining Group's share of Canadian company Ivanhoe Mines will increase to 13.88% following the completion of a private share purchase and sale transaction, positioning Zijin Mining and Citic Metal as the two largest shareholders, Ivanhoe said on Tuesday October 8.Citic Metal Africa and Robert Friedland, currently the two main shareholders in Ivanhoe, have agreed to sell a portion of their shar...Read More

The Rotterdam in-warehouse premiums for nickel cathode and briquette have continued to decline in the week ending Tuesday October 8.Short position holders were reported to be eager to avoid the elevated holding costs associated with the persistent, wide backwardation in the London Metal Exchange cash/three-month nickel spread, which was around $101 per tonne on Tuesday, by delivering material back...Read More

A consortium including commodities brokerage Marex Spectron has launched a product monitoring the up-to-date operational status of up to 90% of the world's copper smelters using satellite technology. The SAVANT Global Copper Smelting Index is a partnership between Marex Spectron and geospatial intelligence company Earth-i, with development partly funded by the UK Space Agency via the European Spac...Read More

Flat steel import prices into the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia were stable this week on limited demand, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday October 8.Buyers were reluctant to book large tonnages before prices hit a market bottom and end-user demand begins to improve, they said. UAE Offer prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) from China were heard at $450-460 per tonne cfr this week, with offer...Read More

Export prices for Chinese cold-rolled coil and hot-dipped galvanized coil were unchanged during the week to Tuesday October 8 due to Golden Week - the week-long holiday to mark the country's 70th anniversary. Cold rolled coil Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel cold-rolled coil (CRC), export, fob China, was $500-505 per tonne on Tuesday October 8, unchanged from September 24. No of...Read More

China's hot-rolled coil prices weakened on Tuesday October 8 after the market resumed trading following the country's Golden Week amid expectations of rising supply.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,610-3,620 yuan ($505-506) per tonne, down 10 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tangshan): 3,560 yuan per tonne, down 20 yuan per tonneSellers lowered their prices in response to a declining futures marke...Read More

China's domestic rebar prices moved down on Tuesday October 8 on heightened selling interest and weak futures on the first working day after the country's Golden Week. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,740-3,780 yuan ($525-530) per tonne, down 20-30 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): 3,590-3,630 yuan per tonne, down 10 yuan per tonneStockists who built up their inventories late in Septembe...Read More

The latest bids, offers and deals in the global markets for hot-rolled coil, cold-rolled coil, hot-dipped galvanized coil, pre-painted galvanized iron, plate, sheet and other flat steel products.Latest transaction: hot-rolled coilHot-rolled coilEast China, domestic,...Read More

(IDEX Online) - SCS Global Services (SCS) has announced the launch of a pilot program to audit and analyze the sustainability of lab grown diamonds. SCS is a third-party certifier and standards developer that has been retained by the Lab Grown Diamond Council to create an independent "product" sustainability certification standard for diamonds."The pilot audits mark an important step in the proces...Read More

(IDEX Online) - The Diamond Empowerment Fund will distribute grants totaling $470,000 to nine beneficiaries on three continents. The grants will support girls' education, entrepreneurship, youth empowerment and higher education opportunities.This year for the first time, a grant is being given to a program for girls in high school at the Ambaba Girls School in Surat, India. The program focuse...Read More

(IDEX Online) - The Diamond Producers Association (DPA) has launched its new Real is Rare, Real is a Diamond campaign. Called "The Diamond Journey," it follows the journey from discovery to a finished 2-carat engagementThe DPA says that besides themes of love and romance, the campaign highlights the heirloom quality of diamonds to encourage consumers to understand the legacy of diamonds. This camp...Read More