The three-month nickel price on the LME was trading at its highest level in more than a month on Monday April 20, while a large inflow of some 46,275 tonnes of primary aluminium put pressure on the light metal's underlying price. Nickel's outright price on the London Metal Exchange was recently seen at $12,405 per tonne, up by just over 2.8% from Friday's closing price of $12,042 per tonne, w...Read More

Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States have fallen below $24 per hundredweight ($480 per short ton) for the first time since late last October. Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $23.92 per cwt ($478.40 per ton) on Monday April 20, down by 2.9% from $24.63 per cwt on Friday April 17 and down by 2% from $24.42 per cwt a week earlier on April 13.T...Read More

Both cold-heading quality (CHQ) and high-carbon (HC) wire rod prices have fallen due to declining raw material costs and a downturn in demand due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Fastmarkets has learned.Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel wire rod cold-heading quality, ddp settled at $36 per hundredweight ($720 per short ton) on Friday April 17, down by 4% from $37.50 per cwt during the previous mont...Read More

Prices for flat steel in Russia's Central Federal District around Moscow stabilized over the past week with trading activity limited due to the Covid-19 pandemic, sources told Fastmarkets on Monday April 20.Buying in Russia's flat steel market was slow over the assessment week, with traded volumes minor amid the pandemic, sources said."The number of new orders dropped, with some buyers trying eith...Read More

The price of steel rebar in Russia's Central Federal District around Moscow was stable week on week, while buying remained slow due to the Covid-19 restrictions, sources told Fastmarkets on Monday April 20.Activity in construction, the key rebar consuming sector, slowed down gradually, while a majority of construction sites have been closed since April 13, sources said."Only strategic projects suc...Read More

Defaults among overseas buyers have become a problem for Chinese steel exporters in recent weeks, with falling prices and weakening demand triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic leading to an increase in export credit insurance claims.When contacted by Fastmarkets two weeks' ago, a source at a steel mill in northern China said he was having to deal with a shipment of 5,000 tonnes of hot-dipped galvani...Read More

China's domestic hot-rolled coil prices were stable on Monday April 20 despite only "moderate" trading, while some mills raised export prices on limited resources. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,330-3,340 yuan ($471-472) per tonne, unchanged Northern China (Tangshan): 3,260 yuan per tonne, unchanged A Shanghai-based trader said sellers were keeping prices stable with futures prices remaining...Read More

The import price for steel slab in Southeast Asia and East Asia experienced an upswing over the past week due to lower slab supply and a rebound in regional hot-rolled coil prices. Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel slab imports, cfr Southeast Asia and East Asia was $350-360 per tonne on Monday April 20, up by $15-20 per tonne from $330-345 per tonne a week earlier. Over the past week, 3...Read More

Turkish domestic auto-bundle scrap prices increased over the past week due to rising imported ferrous scrap costs, sources said on Monday April 20.Deep-sea scrap import prices increased by more then $15 per tonne at the beginning of last week because of the limited supply coming from Europe and the United States, sources said.Following the upturn in the deep-sea scrap values, auto bundle scrap...Read More

The Indian Steel Association (ISA) has revised downward India's steel demand growth forecast for 2020 as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic in the country and the subsequent lockdown. The association, which represents some of the country's biggest steel companies, said predictions of steel demand growth of 5.1% this year - made in February - have now been revised down to -7.7%. The main downstream...Read More

Prices for pig iron exports from the south of Brazil rebounded during the week ended Friday April 17 on continued demand in China and lower freight rates.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for pig iron, export, fob port of Vitoria/Rio, Brazil was $270-280 per tonne on Friday, up from $265 per tonne a week before.Once the previous assessment was published on Thursday April 9, a sal...Read More

Ferrous scrap prices in the global markets continued to increase during the working week ended Friday April 17, amid limited supply in Europe and the United States and the higher demand from mills in Turkey, but prices might be at their peak.Mills in Turkey accelerated deep-sea bookings with prices stabilizingDemand in Turkey raised US pricesBuyers in Vietnam unwilling to pay higher pricesSellers...Read More

The market for seaborne iron ore fines continued to strengthen on Monday April 20, with Brazilian producer Vale cutting its production guidance figure for 2020 to 310-330 million tonnes.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $87.45 per tonne, up by $1.28 per tonne.62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $89.11 per tonne, up by $1.21 per tonne.58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qin...Read More

Seaborne prices remained under pressure on Monday April 20 due to a pessimistic sentiment over the imbalance between supply and demand, sources said.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $128.26 per tonne, down $2.34 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $136.51 per tonne, up $0.76 per tonneHard coking coal, fob DBCT: $117.01 per tonne, down $2 per tonneHard coking coal...Read More

The base metals on the London Metal Exchange and on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mainly firmer this morning, Monday April 20, but broader markets were mixed with equities braced for the release of corporate earnings. With some countries and regions looking to lift restrictions, while others are extending restrictions and with uncertainty about whether reopening will lead to second waves of t...Read More

Key data from the pricing sessions in Europe, the United States and Asia for the week ended Friday April 17.United States Silicon prices hold week on week in the US, with a standoff reportedly in effect between sellers and buyers. Producers are not lowering their quotes because they do not trust any business to materialize. Ongoing automaker shutdowns during...Read More

The Chinese magnesium market was supported by output cuts and the suspension of operations at small plants in the week ended Friday April 17, but muted demand has limited supply-driven price increases in the international market.Fastmarkets assessed the price of magnesium 99%, exw China, at 13,000-13,100 yuan ($1,836-1,850) per tonne on Friday, up from 12,900-13,100 yuan per tonne a week earlier.T...Read More

A summary of Brazilian miner Vale's base metals production results for the first quarter of 2020, as stated in its production report on Friday April 17.In brief Nickel output declined during the first three months of the year after operations at Canadian unit Voisey's Bay were halted due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and amid other planned outages during the three-month period. Nickel production incre...Read More

Chinese domestic portside manganese ore prices of both high and low grades registered significant increases in the latest assessments on Friday April 17, after the country's ore traders raised offer prices notably in response to a 14-day extension of the lockdown in South Africa. On April 9, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced he would extend the nationwide lockdown in place sin...Read More

Singapore's rebar market has come to a complete standstill due to a suspension of all construction activity in the island nation apart from that for key infrastructure projects as a measure to contain the spread of the Covid-19 virus.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar) import, cfr Singapore, which mainly looks at cargoes sold into Singapore on a theoretical-weigh...Read More