Brazil-based miner Vale said fragments of the northern slope of the Gongo Soco mine pit slipped early on Friday May 31 but did not have any adverse effects on the nearby Sul Superior dam."These pieces settled gently at the bottom of the pit, with early assessments indicating that the wall is sliding gradually, verifying evaluations that any further slippage should occur without major consequence,"...Read More

Global ferrous scrap prices showed different dynamics during the working week ended Friday May 31, with Turkish import prices declining on limited buying activity and Asian import prices rising or holding their ground on steady demand. Turkish import prices down on lackluster rebar sales US export prices up on weekly basis, but latest sale closed lower Vietnam prices flat, Taiwan prices rise on st...Read More

James Hyerczyk15 hours ago (May 31, 2019 9:47 AM GMT)Gold futures are trading higher on Friday, putting the market in a position to finish the week and the month with solid gains. It took a while for gold prices to get rolling to the upside in May. The fundamental events were there, but buyers first had to establish support and a value zone.The price action indicates that the value area is a techn...Read More

Zinc's three-month price on the London Metal Exchange was lower at the close of trading on Friday May 31, settling just above $2,500 per tonne, while continued tightness across the metal's forward curve deterred fresh buying.Participants seeking to purchase the galvanizing metal must now factor a cash/three-month backwardation of $144 per tonne in, while nearby spreads also remain less favorable f...Read More

Seaborne iron ore prices fell further on Friday May 31 amid losses in the futures and steel markets.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $101.60 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down by $2.27 per tonne.MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $100.08 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down by $2.27 per tonne.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $105.53 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down by $2.13 per tonne.MB 58% Fe Premium Index: $94.55 pe...Read More

Seaborne coking coal prices have ended this week lower, and expectations are rife that the market would weaken further, which prompted buyers to sit things out on Friday May 31.The Fastmarkets MB fob Australia Premium Hard Coking Coal Index stood at $201.59 per tonne during the day, unchanged from a day earlier but down 1.3% from that on Monday.The Fastmarkets MB cfr China Premium Hard Coking Coal...Read More

Alloy steel scrap prices in the UK and Europe were stable this week but decreases were expected next month because of diminishing demand, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday May 31.The market this week was described as stable and uneventful, as regards prices. But the lack of a price reaction to the lower demand was due, at least in part, to the fact that prices had recently fallen by a significant...Read More

Zinc's three-month price on the London Metal Exchange was lower at the close of trading on Friday May 31, settling just above $2,500 per tonne, while continued tightness across the metal's forward curve deterred fresh buying.Participants seeking to purchase the galvanizing metal must now factor a cash/three-month backwardation of $144 per tonne in, while nearby spreads also remain less favorable f...Read More

Tin's forwards spreads on the London Metal Exchange narrowed significantly over the week ended Friday May 31, easing from their widest backwardation since 2015.This came after a flurry of inflows led to an uptick of more than 80% in LME stocks over May, quelling some concerns about market instability.The metal's cash/three-month spread narrowed from $320 per tonne earlier this week, to trade at $1...Read More

An overview of the battery raw materials markets and their latest price moves.Read More

Copper concentrate treatment and refining charges (TC/RCs) went up marginally in late May from record low levels on May 24, while traders continued to take spot tonnages at similar terms and smelters became more active.Fastmarkets' Asia-Pacific TC/RC index rose to $58.90 per tonne/5.89 cents per lb on Friday May 31, compared with $58.30 per tonne/5.83 cents per lb a week ago when it was at the low...Read More

Customers of Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) told Fastmarkets that copper deliveries for May have arrived on time and June deliveries are not expected to be affected by the Zambian government's recent liquidation order of the 310,000 tonne per year facility. The Zambian government filed an official document to the High Court to liquidate the assets of KCM, which is majority-owned by Vedanta Resources,...Read More

Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mixed during morning trading on Friday May 31, with most metals trading in narrow ranges despite a marginal downturn in the US dollar index. Volumes traded have been moderate over the morning, with more than 6,800 lots of copper exchanged as of 9:37am London time. The red metal's three-month price continues to trade in negative territory below $...Read More

Deliverable nickel and zinc stocks in Shanghai Futures Exchange-approved warehouses rose in the week to Friday May 31, while the rest of the complex retreated. SHFE nickel stocks totaled 9,938 tonnes on Friday, up by 840 tonnes or 9.2% from last Friday. The largest inflow of nickel this week was registered at SIPG Logistics' warehouse in Shanghai, with 725 tonnes of the metal entering the warehous...Read More

Base metals traded on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mostly little changed during morning trading on Friday May 31, while market participants digested disappointing Chinese manufacturing data.In data on Friday, the much-awaited release of China's official manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) for May disappointed with a reading of 49.4, significantly lower than the forecast 49.9. Apri...Read More

Cold-rolled coil and coated sheet prices in the United States fell for a third week in a row, with soft demand and bearish sentiment remaining pervasive across the flat-rolled steel markets. Fastmarkets AMM's weekly assessment for US domestic cold-rolled coil dropped to $37 per hundredweight ($740 per short ton) on May 30 from $38 per cwt one week earlier. Fastmarkets AMM also assessed the&nb...Read More

Beam prices in the United States have retreated in the wake of a round of mill price cuts announced in late April, while market sentiment remains weak overall for much of the country, according to sources. Fastmarkets AMM's price assessment for domestic W8x8 beams fell by $2 per hundredweight to $41.25 per cwt ($825 per short ton) fob mill on Thursday May 30. That price is down by 4.6% from $...Read More

Troubled UK long steel producer British Steel entered compulsory liquidation on May 22. Fastmarkets examines the reasons behind the company's recent struggles, from uncertainty about Brexit and a slump in orders, to rising costs for raw materials.Brexit uncertaintyThe future of British Steel remains uncertain, with the UK's Insolvency Service approaching "more than 80 potential trade purchasers" t...Read More

As competition in the global steel markets remains fierce, Fastmarkets provides an update on the new, progressing and closed trade cases from around the world in May 2019.The case list below includes only updates. For other continuing cases, see the updates for January,...Read More

Indian mills were likely to increase their prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) for June sales by 1,000 rupees ($14) per tonne because of a rise in input costs, Fastmarkets was told on Friday May 31.Officials from at least two mills confirmed that their mills may consider increasing domestic HRC prices because of rises in the costs of key raw materials such as iron ore and coking coal."Domestic spot p...Read More