Mining companies in Brazil that operate 'upstream' tailings dams will have to completely decommission them by August 15, 2023, according to a new resolution issued by the country's mining agency ANM on Friday February 15.The document, published in the Brazilian official gazette on Monday February 18, showed that 84 dams currently operate through the upstream method, or an 'unidentified' one, and a...Read More

Brazilian miner Vale has pre-emptively evacuated about 200 people living close to another of its iron ore tailings dams after reviewing an independent report, the company said on Sunday February 17.The people were taken from Nova Lima, close to the Mar Azul mine in the south-eastern state of Minas Gerais. Level 2 of the country's emergency action plan for tailings dams was triggered by Vale a...Read More

Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) in Southern Europe have increased over the past week, supported by higher import offers, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday February 20.In Northern Europe, domestic prices picked up slightly, but buyers largely resisted the rises. This region's steel sector has traditionally been less exposed to the influence of imports and more focused on its domestic...Read More

Europe frets over the stability of Indonesian tin supply, China sees less product coming from Myanmar and US buyers are trying to wait out the current high tin prices. Europe mulls how to make up for lost Indonesian supply Chinese premiums flat while import window closed US sees little spot buying, with buyers said to be waiting for rising LME tin prices to subside.European premiums flatIn Europe,...Read More

Slight price increases have begun to emerge for domestic hollow steel sections in Europe as a result of increases in the upstream steel coil market. ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steelmaker, announced on Tuesday February 19 that its prices for hot-rolled coil, cold-rolled coil and hot-dipped galvanized coil would increase by ?,?30 per tonne with immediate effect. The producer's higher HRC off...Read More

Shanghai zinc premiums softened over the past week on low spot interest due to import losses and a backwardation in London Metal Exchange price spreads, while lead premiums were largely unchanged across the globe, Fastmarkets heard on Wednesday February 20. Shanghai zinc market saw transactions at a lower premium, and import losses hovered around $100 per tonne. The contango of zinc spreads in mid...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday February 20 that are worth another look.A blockchain pilot project designed to demonstrate the presence of artisanal and small-scale mining sites in the tungsten supply chain is scheduled to be completed in May 2019. Glencore expects healthy future demand for cobalt and a bottoming out of prices after a difficul...Read More

Section 232 tariffs on aluminium and steel raised $3.6 billion in their first nine months, and revenues for the last two months are likely to push that figure up by around another $1 billion, US government data shows.That figure would be enough to cover the shortfall in funding sought by United States President Donald Trump for border security. In other words, aluminium and steel tariffs could fun...Read More

Detailed data for Chinese trade is still not available, but there are indications that the East Asian country may have become the biggest importer of pig iron in Asia last year, according to Fastmarkets' research team.We pointed out in June last year that the Chinese import pig iron market might revive to fill the widening gap between iron and steel production in China, alongside ferrous scrap.Hon...Read More

The process to exclude steel and aluminium from the Section 232 import tariffs applied by the United States is having some interesting consequences.Notably, in the event of a national security issue - which Section 232 was designed to address - the United States would theoretically rely on Japan for its steel and Saudi Arabia for its aluminium.Those countries have been granted the highest volume o...Read More

Copper's three-month price on the London Metal Exchange was up over 1% at the close of trading on Wednesday February 20, breaching $6,400 per tonne for the first time since July 2018 amid high volumes and dwindling LME stocks. Total volumes traded in copper led the complex with more than 21,000 lots changing hands by the close, the most since January 4. Despite significant buying over the aft...Read More

The Comex copper market continued to move in a positive direction on Wednesday February 20, with global trade talks between the United States and China showing progress.The copper price for March settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange increased 2.25 cents to $2.8970 per lb. Additionally, the red metal's price remains elevated against a backdrop of falling London....Read More

Seaborne iron ore prices fell across the board on Wednesday February 20 amid a quiet trading day, while Fortescue Metals Group (FMG) announced its product discount levels for March.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $88 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $1.21 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $87.40 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $1.21 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $89.10 per tonne...Read More

Steel beam prices in the domestic Northern European market were stable-to-soft this week, with poor demand continuing to outweigh rising raw material costs, Fastmarkets heard on Wednesday February 20.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic S235-grade, 200x200mm, category-2 H-beam in Northern Europe was ?,?600-630 ($679-713) per tonne delivered on February 20, widening downward by ?,?10 p...Read More

Copper's three-month price on the London Metal Exchange was up over 1% at the close of trading on Wednesday February 20, breaching $6,400 per tonne for the first time since July 2018 amid high volumes and dwindling LME stocks. Total volumes traded in copper led the complex with more than 21,000 lots changing hands by the close, the most since January 4. Despite significant buying over the aft...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday February 20 that are worth another look.A blockchain pilot project designed to demonstrate the presence of artisanal and small-scale mining sites in the tungsten supply chain is scheduled to be completed in May 2019. Glencore expects healthy future demand for cobalt and a bottoming out of prices after a difficul...Read More

A blockchain pilot project designed to demonstrate the presence of artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sites in the tungsten supply chain is scheduled to be completed in May 2019.The SustainBlock trial started in May 2018 and is focused on a tungsten supply chain originating from Rwanda.Funded by the European Partnership for Responsible Minerals (EPRM), a multi-stakeholder grouping set up to cr...Read More

The following Fastmarkets UK non-ferrous scrap and foundry ingot prices changed on Wednesday February 20:Aluminium ingotLM6/LM25 gravity diecasting ingot: ?1,700-1,780 per tonne from ?1,710-1,790...Read More

The global refined zinc market deficit shrank by 13% year on year in 2018 to 384,000 tonnes from 2017's 442,000 tonne deficit, caused by dampening demand in China, South Africa and Turkey, the International Lead & Zinc Study Group (ILZSG) said on Wednesday February 20. World production of refined zinc last year was roughly flat with 2017, increasing just 0.1% year on year to 13,279,000 tonnes from...Read More

The Comex copper market continued to move in a positive direction on Wednesday February 20, with global trade talks between the United States and China showing progress.The copper price for March settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange increased 2.25 cents to $2.8970 per lb. Additionally, the red metal's price remains elevated against a backdrop of falling London....Read More