With silver priced barely above the cost of production, unsurprisingly, the silver supply has been falling. Here's what to watch out for...Chris Marcus of Arcadia Economics interviews James AndersonWith the price of silver barely above the miners cost of production, not surprisingly, the silver supply has been falling.Will that continue? And what should you watch out for?Click to watch the video t...Read More

Currency exchange rates can make or break a steel trade, and with forex volatility in emerging markets expected to continue for the rest of the year, the Asian ferrous markets are likely to see more price fluctuations before the end of 2019.These five currency pairs should be on your watch-list for the significant influences they could bring to bear on key global steel and ferrous scrap trade flow...Read More

The three-month nickel price on the London Metal Exchange was higher at the close of trading on Wednesday August 28, breaching the $16,000 per tonne resistance level in a bout of short covering, while tightness in the metal's forward curve meant that it continued to trade at record levels.Some 8,000 lots of nickel changed hands by the close of trading on Wednesday, while the metal's price fluctuat...Read More

A summary of London Metal Exchange warrant premiums from across the globe for the week to Wednesday August 28.Please click...Read More

Prices for seaborne cargoes of premium hard coking coal in the fob Australia segment took a tumble on Wednesday August 28 in contrast with strengthening cfr China ones, underlining the robust demand for top-quality materials in China compared with the rest of the market.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $149 per tonne, down $5.28 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang...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

An overview of the minor metals markets and their latest price moves.Read More

The CIS export price for steel billet slipped on Wednesday August 28, following the sharp drop in ferrous scrap prices earlier this week as well as the lack of trading activity in the semi-finished steel market.Fastmarkets' daily steel billet index, export, fob Black Sea, CIS, was $390 per tonne on August 28, down by $5 day on day.Most mills were offering material at around $400 per tonne fob Blac...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday August 28 that are worth another look.Australian lithium spodumene producer Galaxy Resources has bought Alita Resources' debt for $31.1 million, including interest, fees and costs.Chinese aluminium producers are ramping up production on improved aluminium prices, with output at one smelter - Shanxi Meixin Industry - now runnin...Read More

While certain lead and zinc scrap prices in the United Stated moved slightly lower in the two weeks to Tuesday August 27 due to seasonal slowdowns, many sources remained optimistic about the market outlook for the months ahead despite some export competition."It seems like we've fallen into a groove here. Compared to everything else, it's not so bad. We've seen some activity as of late, but I thin...Read More

The London Metal Exchange tin price has fallen to a four-year low, and the sell-off has prompted somewhat different regional reactions in the week to Tuesday August 27. Europe sees little buying despite low tin prices.  Low LME price prompts some US buyers to return Limited arbitrage opportunities keep cif Shanghai tin at $230-250 per tonne European premiums static despite 12% price slump In...Read More

RAPAPORT... Sales at Tiffany & Co. slipped in the second quarter, aspurchases by foreign tourists decreased in the Americas and Asia Pacific. Revenue fell 3% to $1.05 billion year on year in the threemonths ending July 31, while comparable-store sales - at branches open for atleast a year - slipped 4%, the jeweler said Wednesday. Profit dropped 6% to$136.3 million. Foreign tourists spent less...Read More

RAPAPORT... Senior vice president and chief marketing officer KathrynKimmel will leave the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) after 29 years. A third-generation jewelry-industry member, Kimmel worked inretail, manufacturing and various other fields within the trade before joiningthe GIA. During her time with the organization, she developed its outreachcampaign to help consumers understand the...Read More

Global nickel premiums were flat in the week to Tuesday August 27, with subdued spot consumption reported across the board, precipitated by seasonal illiquidity in Europe and the United States and increased arbitrage losses in China. Chinese premiums traded flat with consumers deterred from purchasing by a negative arbitrage of 6,400 yuan per tonne, which has increased from 6,000 yuan per tonne o...Read More

RAPAPORT... Llewellyn Delport has stepped down as CEO ofTrans Hex following continued operating losses and uncertainty about thecompany's future, it said Tuesday.  Delport, who has been with the South Africa-based minersince 2004, will leave August 31. Board chairman Marco Wentzel will head thecompany until it finds a replacement. Last month, Trans Hex issued a warning about its ability...Read More

RAPAPORT... De Beers' rough-diamond sales plunged 44% year on year thismonth as customers rejected goods or exercised the miner's buyback option. Sales fell to $280 million in the seventh sales cycle of theyear, as sightholders continued to struggle with weak retail demand and anoversupply of rough in the manufacturing and trading sectors. However, thatfigure was 12% higher than the $250 mill...Read More

The Shanghai copper cathode premium was higher in the week to Tuesday August 27, marking the fifth uptick this month largely due to emerging tightness in SX-EW availability, while broadly stagnant demand over the summer period has limited spot business in Europe and the United States. SX-EW cathode brand price gap emerges  End-use demand a missing factor for European premiums  Subdued s...Read More

RAPAPORT... Net imports of diamonds to the US dropped to their lowest value on record during the first half of 2019, as in-bound shipments fell at a faster rate than exports. The country's net diamond account - a measure of total imports of rough and polished minus total exports - declined 52% to $802 million, a level unmatched in 30 years of data archived by Rapaport News. Polished imports f...Read More

The Diamond Development Initiative announced the appointment of Ian Rowe as its new Executive Director, with effect from September 2, 2019. His appointment follows the departure of Dorothee Gizenga, DDI's founding Executive Director, who will now take on a new role as Regional Director to lead DDI's expansion in Africa. She'll be based in her home country, in Kinshasa, DRC. DDI'...Read More

The Diamond Club West Coast, one of the three diamond bourses affiliated to the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) in the USA, hosted a delegation from the GIA at its monthly luncheon meeting. An impressive number of the DCWC membership came to the bourse on South Hill Street in Los Angeles to meet and listen to Phillip Yantzer, Vice President of Laboratory Operations at GIA. Yantzer expl...Read More