Gold tends to lead the industrial metals sector at intermediate-term bottoms.Regardless of whether or not GYX makes a new low within the next couple of months, the performance of the gold market suggests that the industrial metals sector will commence an intermediate-term rally before the end of this year.The Baltic Dry Index is also predicting an industrial metals rally.Editor's note: Originally...Read More

By Peter Hobson, Yawen Chen3 Min ReadLONDON/BEIJING (Reuters) - China has partially lifted restrictions on imports of gold, bullion industry sources said, loosening curbs that had stopped an estimated 300-500 tonnes of the metal worth $15-25 billion at current prices from entering the country since May.FILE PHOTO: A gold ring is seen on the hand of a customer at Caibai Jewelry store, in Beijing, C...Read More

The gold-silver ratio is expected to come down in the next few months, with silver outperforming gold, said Todd Horwitz, chief strategist of BubbaTrading.com. "I've think we've got a big run coming, I think it's going to narrow that range in gold, I don't think gold's going down. I think silver is going to finally outperform gold over the next two to three months," Horwitz told Kitco News. Horw...Read More

The three-month zinc price on the London Metal Exchange was higher at the close of trading on Wednesday August 21, gaining by 2.3% on low turnover, while a steady decline in tin futures continued to prompt market concerns.Zinc futures began the day trading at around $2,230 per tonne before a strong bout of buying saw the metal close at $2,288.50 per tonne, its highest price since August 13.Volumes...Read More

A summary of London Metal Exchange warrant premiums from across the globe for the week to Wednesday August 21.Please click...Read More

Nickel premiums in China fell due to a widened arbitrage loss in the week to August 20 while European and United States premiums held during the quiet summer period despite a tightening forward curve and London Metal Exchange price volatility. Chinese premiums decline with traders not prepared to purchase material at a negative arbitrage, which widened to a loss of 6,000 yuan per tonne on Tuesday...Read More

An overview of the noble alloys markets and their latest price moves.Read More

Moody's expects coal sector EBITDA to decline more than 3% over the next 12 months. Weighing on the assessment was a substantive drop in thermal coal export prices, while economic, environmental and social factors continued to weigh on demand from utilities, VP and senior credit officer Benjamin Nelson said."Coal producers' profitability will worsen significantly over the next 12-to-18 months, dri...Read More

The offtake agreement that sees Glencore market the vanadium pentoxide (V2O5) produced by Largo Resources in Brazil will not be renewed when it expires on April 30, 2020, the latter said late on Tuesday August 20. "Our current offtake agreement was instrumental in securing the initial financing for the construction of the Marac??s Menchen mine," Largo Resources' chief executive officer Mark Smith...Read More

The consistent wide contango in London Metal Exchange price spreads pushed aluminium premiums in Rotterdam higher in the week ended Tuesday August 20, while premiums in South Korea declined because of poor demand. Rotterdam duty-unpaid premium at highest since June 2018 MJP premium flat due to lack of activity Midwest US premium remains untested.European aluminium premiums high on contangoPremiums...Read More

Here Are 3 Hot Things to Know About Stocks Right Now Stocks finished up Wednesday, boosted by strong earnings reports from Target (TGT - Get Report) and Lowe's (LOW - Get Report)   and despite a brief late afternoon yield curve inversion. Target surged after the big-box retailer reported second-quarter earnings handily ahead of analysts' estimates and raised its full-year guidan...Read More

Trading was quiet in the Turkish deep-sea scrap import markets, with most mills not showing any eagerness to buy material, and a few still bidding below the current offer prices, sources said on Wednesday August 21.A number of steel mills were staying out of the scrap import markets because of the weak demand for finished long steel products and billet, so the pressure on scrap prices was increasi...Read More

The drone sound from the markets has not changed - no progress on United States-China trade talks, continued economic headwinds and various simmering geopolitical concerns.The fact there is more central bank and government talk about monetary easing and the need for stimulus highlights the far from bullish situation the global economy is in and that is reflected in market sentimentAsian equity mar...Read More

China's hot-rolled coil prices continued to fall on Wednesday August 21 due to thin trading despite gains in the futures market later in the day.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,690-3,710 yuan ($523-526) per tonne, down 20-30 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tangshan): 3,700 yuan per tonne, down 20-30 yuan per tonneSpot prices dropped after mills lowered their offers by 30-50 yuan per tonne in res...Read More

Fastmarkets is proposing a discontinuance of its weekly price assessments for long and flat steel products in southern China. Southern China is not a major steel production base, and steel products produced in the region tend to differ in quality compared with those from eastern and northern China, which result in their prices not being used as key benchmarks for the domestic market. Furthermore,...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday August 21 that are worth another look.Swiss trading house Trafigura has begun blending copper concentrates in Malaysia, with small batches of output being offered to the market, Fastmarkets has learned.Zinc premiums in the United States widened upward in the week to Tuesday August 20 despite dampened consumption from stee...Read More

Industrial quality low-carbon wire rod prices in the United States have hit a 19-month low to stand at pre-Section 232 levels, with the cost of imported wire rod also down amid fresh offers for material originating from Mexico, Europe and Asia.Fastmarkets' assessment for steel wire rod (low carbon) industrial quality, fob mill US, fell to $31.50-32.50 per hundredweight ($630-650 per short ton) on...Read More

The price of steel mesh-quality wire rod in the European domestic market was unchanged this week, with trading still heavily subdued because of the seasonal summer slowdown, participants told Fastmarkets on Wednesday August 21.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel wire rod (mesh-quality), domestic, delivered Northern Europe, was ?,?485-510 ($538-565) per tonne on Wednesday, unchanged week...Read More

Trading was quiet in the Turkish deep-sea scrap import markets, with most mills not showing any eagerness to buy material, and a few still bidding below the current offer prices, sources said on Wednesday August 21.A number of steel mills were staying out of the scrap import markets because of the weak demand for finished long steel products and billet, so the pressure on scrap prices was increasi...Read More

Seaborne iron ore prices dived further on Wednesday August 21, falling to a level last seen just after Vale's tailings dam accident in Brazil late in January.Fastmarkets' index for iron ore 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $82.38 per tonne, down by $5.56 per tonne. Fastmarkets' index for iron ore 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines, cfr Qingdao: $82.76 per tonne, down by $5.56 per tonne. Fastmarkets' index for i...Read More