Silver's demand fundamentals are more heavily influenced by overall economic health. If the economy is in recession, silver prices can...by Simon Black of Sovereign ManBy the mid-6th century BC, Darius the Great was 'King of Kings', ruling over the vast Achaemenid Empire.By that time, gold and silver had already been in use by earlier civilizations for thousands of years.There are cuneiform tablet...Read More
The new issue of the Seamless OCTG & Linepipe Market Tracker is now online at metalbulletinresearch.com.In this edition, Fastmarkets' research team delivers analysis of seamless OCTG and linepipe across international markets:Covid-19 underscores pipe outlookUnsurprisingly, the concern in the seamless pipe markets across the regions is the effect of the spread of Covid-19 on public health and econo...Read More
The new issue of the Steel Market Tracker is now online at metalbulletinresearch.com.In this edition, Fastmarkets' research team delivers key insights and forecasts into the long and flat products markets.This week's risks to our latest flat-rolled forecasts:The Chinese government is stepping up help to the economy, increasing banks' liquidity. But the spread of the coronavirus worldwide is likely...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.This month's key ferro-alloy forecast highlights:While the ferro-alloy industry's initial response to the Covid-19 outbreak was marked by rising prices primarily in response to supply-side concerns, focus has now shifted somewhat. As Chinese activity slowly returns to more normal levels, for alloys with a strong Chinese prod...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.This week Fastmarkets' analysts and price reporters shared their views and recent findings in a webinar revealing some distinct fundamental tensions for steel, refining alloys and, of course, steelmaking raw materials such as iron ore.While the outlook for chrome and manganese ores and alloys is balanced, as far as market pa...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.A 6% decline in the daily average 62% Fe iron ore fines benchmark last week contributed to the lowest quarterly price rise for the first quarter in five years, in spite of clear evidence of supply-side constraints. Although there were clear demand-related obstacles to iron ore suppliers raking in more typical, seasonal price...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.Coronavirus continues to shape scrap markets but tighter supply may partly offset lower demandWe have downwardly revised our ferrous scrap price forecasts for the following few months and, as a result, for the whole year of 2020, with the Covid-19 outbreak outside China stalling the markets. The Fastmarkets' daily benchmark...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts is ready to view.Although China is slowly returning to pre-outbreak activity, the same cannot be said for the rest of the world, which is grappling with the Covid-19 outbreak, with a fifth of the global population and counting under lockdown. Average blast furnace activity in China is recovering but iron ore demand from outside China is expec...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.Having first hit Asia during early 2020, the Covid-19 viral outbreak is now having an even bigger impact on European countries and the US. Widespread lockdown measures have been put in place on people and industry, and economic activity has slowed markedly.For now, stainless steel markets in Europe and the US are yet to show...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.Despite these unprecedented times, US sheet prices moved in line with our expectations over the past month. While we maintain our view on the direction of pricing during 2020 and the length of the pricing downturn, as the Covid-19 crisis deepens we have increased the magnitude of the price declines through the second quarter...Read More
Freeport-McMoRan has suspended operations at its Chino mine in the US state of New Mexico after a small number of its workers tested positive for Covid-19. Last week, three workers were confirmed to have contracted the novel coronavirus, but operations at the mine continued until the company learned of further cases. "Out of an abundance of caution and concern for the safety of our workers, we hav...Read More
Russian mining giant MMC Norilsk Nickel (Nornickel) has allocated 10.5 billion roubles ($142.2 million) "to combat Covid-19 and ensure social stability" in the regions of its operations.In preparation for the potential spread of Covid-19 to cities in which Nornickel operates, the company has taken extensive measures to purchase all the necessary medication and medical equipment...Read More
RAPAPORT... Exhibitors who had signed up for Baselworld's 2020 show are frustrated over the fair's choice of new dates and refund options after the show was postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak.Organizers MCH Group delayed the fair, which was due to take place April 30 to May 5 alongside Watches & Wonders Geneva. However, the new edition, scheduled for January 28 to February 2, 2021,...Read More
RAPAPORT... US imports of goods used in the retail industry fell to their lowest level in five years in March, signaling that the slowdown in consumer spending will likely extend to the second half of the year."The COVID-19 pandemic is unraveling the economy nationally and globally as most of the world moves toward a lockdown that entails the closure of significant portions of both the servic...Read More
RAPAPORT... Diamond jeweler Graff will contribute $1 million to help at-risk countries stem the spread of the coronavirus.The company will give the money through its charity foundation to the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund, which was created by the World Health Organization (WHO). The funds will be used to provide essential medical supplies in vulnerable communities and to accelerate the d...Read More
Freeport-McMoRan Inc said the concentrator at its Cerro Verde facility in Peru has been operating at roughly one-third of planned rates since the start of April as a result of efforts to prevent the spread of Covid-19.This implies a current annualized production rate of around 151,000 tonnes of copper in concentrate.The mine, in which Freeport has a 53.6% stake, is Peru's largest copper mine and t...Read More
RAPAPORT... Rough prices slumped at Petra Diamonds' March tenders as buyers sought discounts due to the slowdown in the market caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.Goods from Petra's South African mines sold for 27% less than in February on a like-for-like basis, the company reported last week. As a result, the miner chose to sell only 75% of its available volume and exported the rest to sell in A...Read More
A total of 222,020 tonnes of copper scrap has been approved for import into China in a fifth round of metal scrap import quotas, according to an April 10 release from the China Solid Waste & Chemicals Management Bureau.The latest quota is significantly larger than the 3,520 tonnes approved in the fourth round and brings the total amount of copper scrap approved by the bureau since July 2019 up to...Read More
RAPAPORT... Chow Tai Fook's sales slid in the fourth fiscal quarter amid sluggish consumer demand and store closures brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.Retail sales slumped 41% in mainland China in the three months ending March 31, while same-store sales - at branches open for at least year - plunged 50%, the jeweler reported last week. Both retail sales and same-store sales in Hong Kong...Read More
Every mining environment poses different challenges but mining houses tend to prioritise the enhancement of mine health and safety procedures, and technology service provider In2IT Technologies CTO Vishal Barapatre says that the Internet of Things (IoT) is “a top choice” in this regard.He explains that sensor-based feedback was used in mines long before the term IoT had even originate...Read More