Trading activity in the CIS export billet market enlivened toward the end of March amid renewed demand from North Africa, and Algeria in particular.An Algerian long steel producer booked two lots of Russian billet, each of 20,000 tonnes, scheduled for shipment in April at $492 per tonne cfr.The deals were not included in the calculation of Fastmarkets' CIS export...Read More

The prices for flat steel products imported into the United Arab Emirates have been stable over the past week with levels of demand remaining low but consistent, Fastmarkets heard on Tuesday March 26.Demand among end-users has been weak, so buyers were unwilling to place orders for large tonnages, sources told Fastmarkets.In addition, some market participants were expecting prices to come down bec...Read More

Prices for steel rebar and billet in the United Arab Emirates were again unchanged this week as a result of continuing moderate demand, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday March 26.Local rebar producers rolled over their domestic prices for rebar on March 13 and have not announced any changes since then.Rebar importsOman was offering rebar to the UAE at $530-540 per tonne cpt, but no new...Read More

Export prices for Chinese cold-rolled coil (CRC) and hot-dipped galvanized coil (HDG) were little changed in the week to Tuesday March 26 amid limited trading activity ahead of a reduction in China's value-added tax (VAT) next month. Both CRC and HDG export prices had increased for the past six consecutive weeks up to March 19. China will reduce its VAT to 13% on April 1 from the current 16% for t...Read More

Exporters of Chinese hot-rolled coil lowered their prices slightly on Tuesday March 26 on sparse trading, while those in China's domestic market were remained largely steady amid slowing downstream demand.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,850-3,870 yuan ($573-576) per tonne, unchangedNorthern China (Tianjin): 3,800-3,810 yuan per tonne, narrowing downward 10 yuan per tonneWhile prices have been...Read More

China's domestic rebar prices resumed their downward trend on Tuesday March 26 after holding steady for a day, with bearish sentiment brought about by the upcoming decrease of value-added tax in the country weighing on the market. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,800-3,850 yuan ($566-573) per tonne, down 30-40 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): 3,820-3,860 yuan per tonne, down 10-20 yuan...Read More

The latest bids, offers and deals in the global markets for hot-rolled coil, cold-rolled coil, hot-dipped galvanized coil, pre-painted galvanized iron, steel plate, steel sheet and other flat steel products. Latest transaction: hot-rolled coilHot-rolled coilEast China, domestic,...Read More

The latest bids, offers and deals in the global markets for rebar, wire rod, steel beams and other long steel products. ...Read More

Vale's output of metallurgical coal dropped by 11.40% year-on-year in 2018, after bad weather affected its operations in Mozambique early last year, the company said on Tuesday March 26.Production totaled 6.16 million tonnes last year, compared with 6.95 million tonnes in 2017, it added.Coal output was affected by heavy rainfall during the first quarter of 2018, as well as other bottlenecks in com...Read More

Iron ore fines production from Brazilian miner Vale increased during 2018 but just fell short of the earlier guidance of 390 million tonnes, according to a production report published by the company on Tuesday March 26.Vale's iron ore output in 2018 was 384.6 million tonnes, 4.95% above the 366.5 million tonnes of 2017. In October last year, the company had confirmed its annual production guidance...Read More

Physical iron ore prices stayed rangebound for a second day on Tuesday March 26 as market participants waited on news of the full impact of Cyclone Veronica on Australian iron ore operations.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $85.23 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.58 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $84.35 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.58 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $87....Read More

Prices for seaborne premium hard coking coal were mostly stable on Tuesday March 26, although the emergence of a lower offer for second-tier products put some pressure on the segment.An April-loading cargo of a top Australian brand sold at a 4% premium against an index to an end user in eastern China while a shipment of premium mid-vol hard coking coal was traded at $203 per tonne cfr China, sourc...Read More

China imported 1.16 million tonnes of coking coal from Australia in February, down 25% on the year amid port restrictions that emerged at the end of January. The country imported 1.54 million tonnes of Australian coking coal in February a year earlier, according to Chinese customs data.Customs authorities in China had issued verbal directives to end users that Australian coking coal would undergo...Read More

The United States' copper market was modestly lower on Tuesday March 26 morning amid a lack of trading action and industry participants seeking fresh market catalysts. The copper price for May settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange inched down 0.30 cents to $2.8535 per lb. Copper trading has been fairly quiet over the past several weeks, with modest global growth...Read More

Arbitrage for copper, aluminium, zinc and nickel imported into China on Monday March 26*Copper -$132.83 (-893.62 yuan) Aluminium -$266.47 (-1,792.59 yuan) Zinc -$147 (-988.88 yuan) Nickel -$309.55 (-2,082.41 yuan) *Fastmarkets calculates the physical arbitrage for import into China daily by using SHFE...Read More

Zinc's three-month price on the London Metal Exchange was higher during morning trading on Tuesday March 26, with price action keeping firmly above $2,800 per tonne, while the rest of the complex consolidates lower amid dampened investor sentiment. Contributing to the slump in price action, weaker than expected manufacturing data last week from both the United States and Europe continue to indicat...Read More

Northwest China's non-ferrous metals producer-Baiyin Nonferrous Group will suspend one third of its zinc production lines from March 26 for a 20-day planned maintenance period, market sources told Fastmarkets MB.The company runs six, zinc operation lines and will halt two from today until the middle of April. "About 2,500 tonnes of zinc will be removed in Baiyin during March 26-31 [because of the...Read More

Three-month base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange had a mixed start to trading on Tuesday March 26 while recessionary fears subsided. The US 10-year bond yield has rebounded off the 2017 lows reached on Monday, providing global markets with some relief and allowing Asian equity indexes to trade confidently higher on the back of improved risk sentiment.In terms of volume, a total of 4,497...Read More

The high-grade manganese ore index fell on Friday March 22 after sellers re-entered the market offering at a price stable with last month; in alloys, the Chinese ferro-manganese price rose following the recent recovery in the country's silico-manganese market. 44% manganese ore index retreats after previous climbDeals for 37% material concluded at higher levelsSilico-manganese prices rise in China...Read More

Already-strong palladium prices soared to new heights in March, with spot palladium prices topping US$1,600 for the first time on March 20, and hitting an all-time record high of US$1,604 per oz. the next day before pulling back hard to US$1,532 per oz. at press time on March 26.The peak above US$1,600 capped a remarkable seven-month run for palladium, which bottomed briefly at US$842 per oz. in A...Read More