Seaborne iron ore prices inched up on Thursday April 9 with data showing that China's steel inventory is being consumed at a faster-than-expected pace and some jitters emanating about Brazilian supply, market participants said.Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $84.77 per tonne, up $1.13 per tonne.62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $86.20 per tonne, up $1.05 per tonne. 58%...Read More
The seaborne coking coal market underwent another active day of spot trading on Thursday April 9, which resulted in prices remaining largely flat. Fastmarkets IndicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $133.13 per tonne, down $1.14 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $138.25 per tonne, down $0.86 per tonneHard coking coal, fob DBCT: $120.01 per tonne, up $1.67 per tonneHard cokin...Read More
Vietnamese buyers of imported ferrous scrap have dismissed higher offers this week due to the lower Kanto Tetsugen auction prices, while Taiwanese buyers are slowly increasing their bids in light of higher prices in key market Turkey. Market participants said they expect more spot trading activity next week when a clearer price outlook emerges. Vietnam Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for...Read More
Key data from Fastmarkets' pricing session in Shanghai on Thursday April 9. Key drivers Extended lockdowns globally to tackle the spread of the Covid-19 virus has further stifled demand for aluminium including China's exported aluminium products. The front-month aluminium contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange hovers near four-year lows of 11,310 yuan ($ 1,601.30) per tonne, be...Read More
China's hot-rolled coil prices rose on Thursday April 9 despite moderate trading activity, with sentiment improving on gains in the futures market.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,270-3,280 yuan ($463-464) per tonne, up 50 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tangshan): 3,200 yuan per tonne, narrowing upward by 10 yuan per tonneA Shanghai-based trader said trading activity on Thursday was just moderat...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices increased on Thursday April 9 amid reports of a drop in inventory levels at mills and the spot market. Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,400-3,430 yuan ($481-486) per tonne, up by 30 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): 3,350-3,380 yuan per tonne, up 10-20 yuan per tonneSteel stocks continued to drop over the past week due to good demand. Data showing this decline releas...Read More
The London Metal Exchange three-month tin price was boosted during morning trading on Thursday April 9, with a fresh outflow of 115 tonnes, while LME zinc's fresh cancellation of 8,525 tonnes offset an inflow of around 8,950 tonnes.LME tin's outright price was recently at $14,750 per tonne, an uptick over 2% from Wednesday's closing price of $14,397 per tonne, while just over 100 lots of material...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange and Shanghai Futures Exchange were mixed this morning, Thursday April 9, as were Asian-Pacific equity indices. Markets seem to be consolidating after a show of strength earlier in the week, which was fueled by reports that business activity was ramping up and some of the Covid-19 hotspots in Europe were showing some early signs of peaking. While the...Read More
Stainless steel prices in China declined over the past week amid poor demand from both downstream industries within the country and overseas buyers. Market participants said that stainless steelmakers were limited in their ability to slash prices any further because of the recent stability in the price of nickel. The three-month nickel contract on the London Metal Exchange has remained rangebound...Read More
Brazilian mining company Vale has decided to extend the care and maintenance period at its Voisey's Bay nickel mine, in northeast Canada, for up to three months to prevent the spread the Covid-19 coronavirus, the company said on Wednesday April 8.The Long Harbour Processing Plant in Newfoundland, Canada, however, will maintain activity using stockpiled nickel and cobalt concentrates, the miner sai...Read More
Airbus, Europe's largest manufacturer, will cut aircraft production of its core three aircraft models by roughly a third, the company said in a release on Wednesday April 8. The aircraft manufacturer will sharply reduce production from the bestselling A320 single-aisle jet to 40 per month from 60 per month previously, assembled in Toulouse and Hamburg. It will also cut production of the A350 jet t...Read More
The spread of the Covid-19 virus is forcing shutdowns and a reassessment of consumers' cobalt requirements. Prices of cobalt - metal, intermediates and salts - have so far taken a hit amid concerns of a general, global economic slowdown caused by the virus; a slower uptake in electric vehicle usage; and disrupted demand from the aerospace sector. But lockdowns aimed at limiting the spread of the v...Read More
The price of stainless steel in the European domestic market was largely unchanged this week with low nickel prices and a mill restart in Italy preventing further significant increases, Fastmarkets heard on Thursday April 9.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for stainless steel cold-rolled sheet, 2mm, grade 304, transaction domestic, delivered North Europe, was ?,?2,090-2,105 ($2,271-2,287) per...Read More
Prices in Southeast Asia's steel billet market held steady on Thursday April 9 amid a stalling of imports into China. Fastmarkets' daily price assessment for steel billet, import, cfr Southeast Asia, which mainly looks at 120-150mm 5sp grade billet sold into Manila, was $365-375 per tonne on Thursday, unchanged from a day earlier.The range is down $5 per tonne on the low end compared with $370-375...Read More
The gold price rallied again on Thursday, as investors sought a store of value after the Fed said it was pumping an additional US$2.3 trillion in the US economy to stave off depression.On the Comex market in New York, gold for delivery in June, the most active contract, jumped to its highest price since November 2012, at US$1,730 per oz., up just over US$50 per oz., or 3%, compared to Wednesday's...Read More
A new means of exploiting previously overlooked zones of gold mineralization may prove to be the type of disruptive technology needed once the global COVID-19 pandemic is over.Called sustainable mining by drilling (SMD), it uses a unique, surface-based drilling system to get at narrow vein deposits that have been considered uneconomic using existing mining techniques.SMD's creators believe the tec...Read More
Global gold-backed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) had US$23 billion, or 298 tonnes, of net inflows, in the first quarter of 2020 - the highest quarterly amount ever and the largest tonnage additions since 2016, the World Gold Council (WGC) said in its latest report.During the past year, gold ETFs added 659 tonnes, the highest on a rolling annual basis since the financial crisis, with assets under ma...Read More
The mining industry is fraught with capital cost overruns - a quick internet search will turn up many examples. The results quickly highlight that as many as two-thirds of mining projects see cost overruns. Moreover, the researcher can see that it is a decades-long problem. That is, the industry doesn't seem to be getting better at their cost estimates over time. In other words, we aren't learning...Read More
Russia's space agency Roscosmos has condemned U.S. President Donald Trump's order that encourages citizens to mine the moon and other celestial bodies with commercial purposes.The government body likened the policy to colonialism and said it "hardly sets the countries to fruitful cooperation.""There have already been examples in history when one country decided to start seizing territories in its...Read More
Cardinal heading down familiar gold roadSPONSOREDcardinal resourcesSarama right in the middle of big exploration, corporate build-upSPONSOREDsarama resources Exore excels in Cote d'IvoireSPONSOREDexore resourcesAustralia-based junior IronRidge Resources takes big picture approach in AfricaSPONSOREDironridge resources The Moroccan tin mine developer posted a 322% share-price rise over the last...Read More