U.S. equity index futures were lower this morning. S&P 500 futures were down 17 points in pre-opening trade.Index futures were virtually unchanged following release of economic news at 8:30 AM. Consensus for second estimate of second quarter Non-farm Productivity was an increase to 7.5% from 7.3%. Actual was an increase to 10..1%. Consensus for the July U.S. Trade Deficit was $58.0 billion ver...Read More

A stable domestic market for hot-rolled coil in China on Thursday September 3 led exporters to raise their minimum threshold for transaction prices.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 4,040-4,050 yuan ($591-593) yuan per tonne, unchangedPrices were stable in eastern China, with a trader there saying that she had received more bids during the day than on Wednesday.She believes gains in the futures ma...Read More

Chinese battery materials producer GEM has signed an eight-year nickel and cobalt supply contract with Indonesia's Halamahera Persada Lygend (HPAL), starting from 2021.This procurement scheme, seen by Fastmarkets, specifies eight-year totals for battery-grade nickel and cobalt raw materials, with nickel content totalling no less than 74,400 tonnes and no more than 178,560 tonne...Read More

The three-month nickel price on the London Metal Exchange was the laggard during morning trading on Thursday September 3, with price action correcting by more than 3% despite both outflows and freshly canceled material, while tin was the only metal to hold recent price gains against subdued buying sentiment. Nickel's outright price on the LME was recently trading at $15,195 per tonne, falling from...Read More

China's domestic rebar prices failed to increase on Thursday September 3 despite a strengthening of the futures and billet markets, with inventory levels continuing to rise in the past week.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,670-3,700 yuan ($537-541) per tonne, unchangedThis month's expected rise in demand has yet to take place due to unfavorable weather affecting the construction sector in China...Read More

Markets were mixed this morning, Thursday September 3, with the base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange generally firmer, albeit in fairly light volumes.Markets are still underpinned by the prospect of more stimulus from the United States, once Congress can agree on a figure, but some of the metals are starting to look a bit tiredChina's Caixin services purchasing managers' index (PMI) at...Read More

The Cobalt alloy grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lbtrade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparency into the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies. Read More

The Cobalt standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb trade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparency into the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies. Fastmarkets assessed Cobalt...Read More

Key data from Fastmarkets' pricing session in London on Wednesday September 2.Key drivers Antimony prices made further gains in Europe on higher replacement costs from China. Producers were unwilling to cut their price expectations, a stance reinforced by the depreciation of the Chinese yuan...Read More

Key data from the Wednesday September 2 pricing session in London.Key drivers European prices followed the Chinese market higher after domestic suppliers in China raised their offer prices significantly following substantial gains in the futures market. Suppliers were reluctant to sell large...Read More

After a consultation period, Fastmarkets has amended the frequency of its cobalt hydroxide index, min 30% Co, cif China to weekly. The cobalt hydroxide index, min 30% Co, cif China was published on the last working day of the month until the end of July, and has been published fortnightly since August 7. Fastmarkets has seen a sustained increase in spot activity for fixed-price, prompt cobalt hydr...Read More

Spot Chinese cobalt salts prices, including those for cobalt tetroxide and sulfate, softened this week against a backdrop of weakening demand for lithium cobalt oxide (LCO) batteries for the rest of the year.Fastmarkets assessed the price for cobalt tetroxide 72.6% Co min, delivered China at 210,000-220,000 yuan ($30,730-32,194) per tonne on Wednesday September 2, down by 5,000-10,000 yuan per ton...Read More

The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view. A look at stainless steel price movements through August reveals the ongoing battle being faced by stainless steelmakers in Europe and the United States while they try to pass on rising costs to consumers. In these regions, prices on most grades of stainless steel are little changed from July, rising by around 2% at most -...Read More

China's domestic stainless steel prices have risen for a tenth week amid a strengthening nickel market and good downstream demand.The three-month nickel contract on the London Metal Exchange ended Wednesday September 2's official trading session at $15,671 per tonne, up by $594 per tonne (3.9%) from $15,077 per tonne a week earlier.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for nickel pig iron, high-gra...Read More

The Global Mining Symposium wrapped up its final day with an interview with B2Gold (TSX: BTO; NYSE-AM: BTG) president and chief executive Clive Johnson, who sat down with MINING.com senior editor Cecilia Jamasmie.Johnson's career includes leading B2Gold since its inception in late 2006 and, before that, Bema Gold, and has taken him from Russia to Africa and throughout the Americas. Drawing on hi...Read More

Executive chairman and founder of Yamana Gold (TSX: YRI; NYSE: AUY), Peter Marrone, spoke on the second day of the Global Mining Symposium about the company's assets, its strategy, and his views on the price of gold. Marrone started his career practicing law in Toronto, focusing on corporate, securities, and international law and then became the head of investment banking at a major Canadian in...Read More

The nights are drawing in, and the Autumn equinox is upon us in the Northern Hemisphere, with an equal duration of light and dark on Sept. 22. On the positive side, there is an R in the month, so we can eat oysters in the United Kingdom. This advice dates to at least 1599, when it appeared in Henry Buttes's cookbook, Dyets Dry Dinner, although some historians trace it to an ancient Latin saying.Th...Read More

The European Union has added lithium, used in batteries that power electric vehicles (EVs), to a list of critical materials as part of a strategy to reduce its reliance on imports.The group of 27 nations will need about 60 times more lithium and 15 times more cobalt for EV batteries and energy storage by 2050, analysts estimate. The EU's demand for rare earths, used in high-tech devices and milita...Read More

International Tower Hill Mines (TSX: ITH; NYSE-AM: THM) plans to raise US$10.3 million in support of a prefeasibility study on its Livengood gold deposit, 110 km north of Fairbanks, Alaska.In July, the Vancouver-based company announced it had finalized the key contracts to complete a prefeasibility study on the large, low-grade Livengood project, with an expected release date of October 2021.The t...Read More

The Global Mining Symposium continued apace on the second day of the three-day event with Alisha Hiyate, editor at The Canadian Mining Journal, interviewing Ronald-Peter Stoeferle, managing partner and fund manager at Incrementum AG.Stoeferle has co-authored two books: Austrian School for Investors, published in 2016, and the In Gold We Trust report, an annual report he started in 2007 that has be...Read More