A tough financing environment has remained pervasive despite the talk of how bare the reserve cupboards are.Read More

Turkish deep-sea scrap import prices were stable on Wednesday February 6 despite news of a freshly booked cargo, sources told Fastmarkets.A steel mill in the Marmara region booked a European cargo comprising 12,000 tonnes of shredded at $328 per tonne cfr and 6,000 tonnes of busheling at $359 per tonne cfr for March shipment.Offer prices...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday February 6 that are worth another look.Brazilian miner Vale has declared force majeure on a number of iron ore and pellet contracts with customers following the halt of its Brucutu mine in the state of Minas Gerais, the company said on Tuesday February 5. Ghana Manganese has been ordered to cease operations by Ghana'...Read More

The US copper market saw continued buying strength in morning trading on Wednesday February 6 with industry participants awaiting upcoming global trade talks. The copper price for March settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange gained 2.55 cents to $2.8425 per lb. "Senior US and Chinese officials are expected to start another round of trade talks in Beijing next week, wi...Read More

International mining companies that oppose the new mining code in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are a lot closer to resolving their outstanding issues than they were a year-ago, but work remains to be done, according to the chief executive officer of Canadian miner Barrick.Mark Bristow, who took over at Barrick after its $18.3 billion merger with Randgold Resources was completed at the st...Read More

International mining companies that oppose the new mining code in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are a lot closer to resolving their outstanding issues than they were a year-ago, but work remains to be done, according to the chief executive officer of Canadian miner Barrick.Mark Bristow, who took over at Barrick after its $18.3 billion merger with Randgold Resources was completed at the st...Read More

ArcelorMittal Brasil intends to reduce its primary production of crude steel at its electric-arc furnace (EAF) in Barra Mansa city, in Brazil's south-eastern Rio de Janeiro state."We have recently announced a temporary reduction in primary steelmaking activity at our Barra Mansa site," ArcelorMittal told Fastmarkets on Wednesday February 6."There will be no effect on finished steel production from...Read More

The price for rebar produced and delivered in Southern Europe remained flat on Wednesday February 6, while market participants absorbed the implications of new import quotas that in some cases may have already been fully allocated.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic rebar in Southern Europe stayed at ?,?510-520 ($582-594) per tonne delivered on Wednesday, but prices could soon come u...Read More

The Wednesday Market Minute Global stocks drift lower as investors find little detail on trade and policy from President Donald Trump's State of the Union address.European stocks slide as Germany's powerful manufacturing sector sees a slump in industrial orders and luxury carmaker Daimler cites global trade tariffs as operating profits fall 22%.Oil prices retreat as the dollar rides modest gains...Read More

European prices for mesh-quality wire rod stayed flat across the continent on Wednesday February 6, with the initial reaction to the European Commission's (EC) new import quotas suggesting an uncertain supply picture for the rest of the first quarter of 2019.Fastmarkets' weekly domestic price assessments for mesh-quality wire rod in both Northern and Southern Europe stayed at ?,?530-550 ($605-628)...Read More

The environmental secretariat of Brazil's southeastern Minas Gerais state, Semad, has suspended a license granted in 2015 for Vale to operate the Laranjeiras tailings dam, connected to the Brucutu iron ore mine.The decision follows a court ruling that ordered the suspension of the Brucutu mine, according to Vale, and it makes any restart of the mine's operations more difficult."The resumption of t...Read More

Turkish deep-sea scrap import prices were stable on Wednesday February 6 despite news of a freshly booked cargo, sources told Fastmarkets.A steel mill in the Marmara region booked a European cargo comprising 12,000 tonnes of shredded at $328 per tonne cfr and 6,000 tonnes of busheling at $359 per tonne cfr for March shipment.Offer prices...Read More

Brazilian miner Vale has declared force majeure on a number of iron ore and pellet contracts with customers, following the halt of its Brucutu mine in the state of Minas Gerais, the company said on Tuesday February 5.A court in Belo Horizonte, the capital of Minas Gerais, has prohibited Vale from using eight tailings dams on February 4, with Brucutu being the most-affected operation. Annual output...Read More

CIS export billet prices have soared in the past few days, supported by the sharp rise in the global scrap market. Customers in turn accepted higher prices amid expectations of further price increases in the week ahead, Fastmarkets heard on Wednesday February 6.Fastmarkets' daily CIS export billet index was $442 per tonne fob Black Sea on Wednesday, up from $430 per tonne fob a day earlier.Several...Read More

Gold price sales offer opportunity but patience is required. I like to see a market swoon of at least $50/ounce before buying any fresh medium-term gold or related positions.Most amateur gold investors should wait for $100/ounce declines before buying or use very tight stop-losses to protect their capital.When buying, it's important that investors have strong hands accompanying them, and the small...Read More

There are few companies on the market today that have stirred as much emotion and controversy over the years as Cameco (TSX:CCO)(NYSE:CCJ). Despite the fact that the Cameco has seen its share price drop significantly over the years, Canada's largest uranium miner still commands a base of loyal investors that foresee a time (perhaps rapidly emerging) when the stock and, by extension, uranium price...Read More

With uncertainty continuing to cloud the future of the auto industry, and other sectors heavily reliant on the metal industry, it's worth checking the stats for potentially impacted stocks on the TSX index. To catch up, let's look at an auto-related stock, a metal-weighted stock, and an auto stock with the potential to lead the way in the international electric vehicles market.Uni-Select (TSX:UNS)...Read More

Gold price sales offer opportunity but patience is required. I like to see a market swoon of at least $50/ounce before buying any fresh medium-term gold or related positions.Most amateur gold investors should wait for $100/ounce declines before buying or use very tight stop-losses to protect their capital.When buying, it's important that investors have strong hands accompanying them, and the small...Read More

"Our advice is to own as little exposure U.S. equity exposure as your career risk allows." - Martin Tarlie, member of portfolio allocation at Grantham, Mayo, Van Otterloo investment managementThe following is an excerpt from the latest Short Seller's Journal:Economy is worse than policy makers admit publicly - Less than four months ago, the FOMC issued a policy statement that anticipated four rate...Read More

A stronger US dollar saw the gold price ease and took the shine off gold equities.The gold price has lost US$10 an ounce on the spot market since this point yesterday, trading just over $1,303/oz earlier.Base metal futures were mixed in Asian trade this afternoon, while iron ore is around a two-year high - above US$86 per tonne as Vale's production was further curtailed with a key operating licenc...Read More