Seaborne premium hard coking coal prices maintained their uptrend on Thursday September 24 amid active trading, although not as strongly as on Wednesday, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $133.86 per tonne, up $0.09 per tonne Premium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $143.39 per tonne, up $1.70 per tonneHard coking coal, fob DBCT: $110.76...Read More
Iron ore prices rebounded on Thursday September 24, aided by mills' need to restock ahead of a holiday in China, sources said.Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $114.67 per tonne, up $0.86 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $115.46 per tonne, up $0.05 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $107.75 per tonne,down $0.10 per tonne65% Fe Brazil-origin...Read More
London Metal Exchange three-month base metals prices were universally trading lower in the morning session on Thursday September 24, with sustained strength in the dollar index - trading at a six-week high - and macro uncertainty driving down futures prices. The dollar continues to trade above 94 today, most recent trading around 94.53 this morning, acting as an effective headwind for metals tradi...Read More
The largest western banks not only rig the precious metals market...Bob Kudla with Sean on SGTreportBob Kudla joins me to discuss JP Morgan's billion dollar fine and the fact that the largest western banks not only rig the precious metals market, the finance drug cartels, terrorists and mobsters - on the record!Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.We do not consider the average iron ore fines price for September so far above $125 per tonne cfr Qingdao to be sustainable. The bullishness is not likely to last in the long term as we expect Chinese demand growth to slow down. A key factor boosting Chinese steel demand so far has been the stimulus policies from the authori...Read More
Turkish steel producers have continued their silence in the deep-sea scrap markets in hopes of pushing prices downward, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday September 24.The country's steelmakers have been staying away from the deep-sea scrap market since September 9, when bookings were made at $301 per tonne cfr for HMS 1&2 (80:20).Although some US and Baltic Sea...Read More
Reduced availability of hot-rolled coil in Europe from both mills within the region and from overseas suppliers has been supporting domestic prices, sources have told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets calculated its daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe, at ?,?487.81 ($569.82) per tonne on Thursday September 24, up by just ?,?0.20 per tonne from ?,?487.61 per tonne on Wednesday.Th...Read More
Polished prices firm amid shortages and improving holiday orders. Trading restrained due to continued rise in Covid-19 cases. Jewelers preparing 4Q marketing with emphasis on e-commerce strategies to drive growth. Retailers pushing dealers for memo. More manufacturers insisting on cash deals. Steady rough buying during sight week as Surat cutters try to increase production and fill polished supply...Read More
RAPAPORT... Tiffany & Co. plans to achieve 100% traceability of diamonds and precious metals in the coming years as part of a sustainability pledge it released this week.The retailer aims to track all diamonds weighing 0.18 carats or more to the mine of origin or its suppliers' approved mines by 2025, it said Tuesday. It also plans to trace all gold, silver and platinum to the mine or rec...Read More
RAPAPORT... Both male and female US consumers are more likely to purchase and receive diamond jewelry over the next six months than they did during prior coronavirus waves, according to a De Beers survey.Women are also wearing more diamond jewelry than over the last few months, particularly engagement rings and necklaces, the survey found.Two-thirds of Americans said they were more inclined to giv...Read More
RAPAPORT... The International Standards Organization (ISO) has approved its first grading guidelines for polished diamonds in an effort to achieve consistency among laboratories.The new ISO 24106 specifies the terminology, classification and methods that labs should use when grading and describing loose stones, the World Jewellery Confederation (CIBJO) said Wednesday. Implementing the instruc...Read More
Las Vegas, September 24, 2020As the diamond industry begins its recovery from the initial impact of Covid-19, its once-lagging progress toward digital is being vastly accelerated. While this will not be a rapid transition for a trade that has traditionally thrived on face-to-face networking and handshakes, a growing number of companies are putting increased resources into focusing on their online...Read More
London Metal Exchange three-month base metals prices continued to trend lower through Thursday September 24, with dip buying across the complex failing to stall the decreases.Tin, lead, copper and zinc led the price decline, with tin losing 1.3% on Thursday. The volumes traded on the LME have been above average due to the drop in prices.On Wednesday September 23, tin dropped by 3%, its deepest sel...Read More
RAPAPORT... Jewelers of America (JA) and National Jeweler have launched a diversity survey to help comprehend the position of Black Americans in the fine-jewelry industry.The study, which will address hiring practices, inclusion policies and how racial discrimination is handled, is an effort to understand what opportunities are available for Black Americans, and their experience in the diamond and...Read More
Germany-based aluminium products producer Aluminium Rheinfelden GmbH has applied for protective shield proceedings, which could protect the company from going bankrupt, sources told Fastmarkets. Market sources corroborated local press reports that said the company applied to the L??rrach district court to open the protective shield procedure. The proceedings are preliminary insolvency proceed...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Namibia's state-owned diamond dealer reported a 41 per cent slump in profits, down to $6.4m.Namib Desert Diamonds (Namdia) blamed the global pandemic, even though its financial year ended on 29 February. It also cited lower profit margin, foreign exchange losses, increased operating expenses and competition from lab-grown diamonds.Namdia buys diamonds from a partner...Read More
Future increases in aluminium prices will be driven more by macroeconomic factors rsther than supply-and-demand fundamentals into 2021, analysts said in a panel on Tuesday September 22 during Fastmarkets' International Aluminium Conference."The V-shaped recovery that we've been seeing in many of the metals is also macro-driven," Fastmarkets research analyst Andy Farida said.Factors such as a weak...Read More
(IDEX Online) - De Beers is cutting the price of stones under a carat at its current Sight, say sources.The company started discounting larger rough last month at its August Sight, which brought in $320m, by far the highest figure since the pandemic struck.De Beers, the world's largest diamond producer by value, is reportedly now discounting smaller stones as well - under one carat - accordin...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Lucky Kevin Kinard unearthed a diamond weighing over nine carats on a day trip to a park in Arkansas, USA. He was sifting at the Crater of Diamonds State Park, near Murfreesboro, the world's only dig-your-own-diamond attraction, situated on a disused mine. The 9.07-ct stone found by Kevin, 33, is the second largest since the park opened for amateur diamond hunters in 1972. The...Read More
London Metal Exchange three-month base metals prices were universally trading lower in the morning session on Thursday September 24, with sustained strength in the dollar index - trading at a six-week high - and macro uncertainty driving down futures prices. The dollar continues to trade above 94 today, most recent trading around 94.53 this morning, acting as an effective headwind for metals tradi...Read More