Turkey is calling for a level playing field when it comes to trading with the European Union and the United States, Turkish steelmakers said during a panel discussion at Fastmarkets' Middle East Iron and Steel conference in Dubai.Speaking on Tuesday December 10 in a panel discussion about the protectionism Turkish steel faces in its major steel export markets, panelists said they were on...Read More
The price of steel rebar in the Northern European domestic market was unchanged this week, but increases could soon take place because of rising scrap costs, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday December 11. Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, delivered Northern Europe was ?,?475-485 ($526-537) per tonne on Wednesday, unchanged from a week...Read More
Iron ore seaborne prices were up on Wednesday December 11 as steel mills were heard to have kept production levels steady, prompting appetite for the raw material.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $94.67 per tonne, up $1.10 per tonne.62% Fe Pilbara Blend fines, cfr Qingdao: $93.76 per tonne, up $1.10 per tonne.62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $94.19 per to...Read More
Anglo American has cut its annual iron ore production targets at the Kumba operations in South Africa over the 2020-2022 period, but left those for its Minas Rio operations in Brazil unchanged.The miner said it now expects annual iron ore output of 42-43 million tonnes for the coming three years at its Kumba iron...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices were mixed amid weaker demand on Wednesday December 11, with eastern prices up but those in the north of the country down.Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,930-3,960 yuan ($558-563) per tonne, up 20 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): 3,640-3,670 yuan per tonne, down 10-20 yuan per tonneEnd users kept procurement rates limited and stockists were not looking to repl...Read More
When Gay Huey Evans attended her first London Metal Exchange dinner in 1999, she was head of markets at former UK regulator the Financial Services Authority (FSA) - some 20 years later she was there as LME chair elect, the first woman appointed to the role. "As a regulator I would send my markets people and occasionally come to learn a little bit more about commodities. I remember sitting in the b...Read More
Key data from Fastmarkets' pricing session in Europe on Wednesday December 11.Key drivers Price ranges in the alloy and scrap markets have widened over the past week, with sales reported for ferro-silicon at either end of its new price assessment.Low-tin titanium scrap was also trading at slightly higher price levels, although some sources said the market is fairly stable, with a b...Read More
Turkish steel pipe producers have increased their export prices in the past month due to rising raw material costs, sources said on Wednesday December 11.Fastmarkets' monthly price assessment for steel structural pipe export S235JR grade EN10219 2mm wall thickness, fob main port Turkey, was at $540-545 per tonne on Wednesday, up from $515-530 per tonne on November 13.Turkish pipe mills have raised...Read More
China's automobile production increased in November on both a year-on-year basis as well as month on month with automakers replenishing their stock ahead of the new year, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM).Sales also rose last month in comparison with October, though they were still lower than those sold in November last year.The new energy vehicle (NEV) segment...Read More
Turkey is calling for a level playing field when it comes to trading with the European Union and the United States, Turkish steelmakers said during a panel discussion at Fastmarkets' Middle East Iron and Steel conference in Dubai.Speaking on Tuesday December 10 in a panel discussion about the protectionism Turkish steel faces in its major steel export markets, panelists said they were on...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States continue to hover around the $28-per-hundredweight ($560-per-short-ton) threshold in a mostly muted market.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $28.04 per cwt ($560.80 per ton) on Wednesday December 11, up by 0.3% from $27.96 per cwt on December 10 and up by 0.4% from $27.93 per cwt a week...Read More
European producers of heavy steel plate have been targeting domestic price rises this week, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday December 11.The price recovery was due to combination of higher slab costs for re-rollers, some recovery of demand due to re-stocking activity and a positive mood in the EU coil market, sources said.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel, domestic, pla...Read More
Domestic prices for cold-rolled coil in Europe increased across the board over the past week, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday December 11.The rise of CRC was driven by combination of demand improvement owing to restocking activity, production cuts across Europe and higher hot-rolled coil prices, the material used as feedstock for CRC production.On December 11, Fastmarkets' steel...Read More
The price of mesh-quality steel wire rod in the European domestic market was unchanged this week due to a lack of activity, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday December 11. Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel wire rod (mesh-quality), domestic, delivered Northern Europe, was ?,?440-460 ($487-510) per tonne on December 11, unchanged week on week.Fastmarkets' assessment for...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday December 11 that are worth another look.Japan's Kanto Tetsugen has secured a higher price at its ferrous scrap auction for December, which is likely to boost sentiment in the Asian market for the steelmaking raw material.The emergence of a contango in London Metal Exchange aluminium spreads for early next year helped...Read More
James Hyerczyk12 hours ago (Dec 11, 2019 12:43 PM GMT)Gold is edging higher in a lackluster trade on Wednesday. The price action is being compressed by uncertainty ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s monetary policy statement and interest rate decisions and the looming tariff deadline on December 15.Treasury yields are inching lower, which is providing some support for gold. But a slight ri...Read More
Nickel gained more than 3% on the London Metal Exchange on Wednesday December 11, closing at a two-week high.The three-month nickel price ended official trading at $13,850 per tonne, up by more than $400 per tonne from Tuesday's closing price of $13,405 per tonne. Volumes were higher - turnover exceeded 10,000 lots for the first time since October. The metal has shrugged off inflows of more than 2...Read More
The sharp fall in London Metal Exchange three-month lead price has put upward pressure on the US lead premium. Stock liquidation and weak buying saw the Italian delivered zinc premium decline, while the Shanghai zinc market held firm. US zinc premium flat amid "deathly quiet" in spot demand ILZSG data shows an overall deficit of 83,000 tonnes for lead in the first nine months of 2019 Weak buying a...Read More
Seaborne coking coal continued to trade in a narrow range on Wednesday December 11, with Chinese buying activity driving the market.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $135.99 per tonne, down $0.26 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $148.56 per tonne, down $1.78 per tonneHard coking coal, fob DBCT: $122.33 per tonne, unchangedHard coking...Read More
Turkey is calling for a level playing field when it comes to trading with the European Union and the United States, Turkish steelmakers said during a panel discussion at Fastmarkets' Middle East Iron and Steel conference in Dubai.Speaking on Tuesday December 10 in a panel discussion about the protectionism Turkish steel faces in its major steel export markets, panelists said they were on...Read More