Fastmarkets premiums held in all regions on Tuesday April 23 despite supply uncertainty from Indonesia and stocks held off-exchange. European buyers stay out of spot market.  The US market is heavily supplied and spot demand is quiet over the Passover/Easter holiday.  China's import window closed. European premiums hold despite falling LME tin price In Europe, Fastmarkets assessed the p...Read More

OM Manganese will spend as much as A$7.3 million ($5.2 million) to establish a manganese ore joint venture in Western Australia with copper-gold-manganese explorer Bryah Resources, Fastmarkets heard on Wednesday April 24.Under the agreement, OM Manganese, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Australia-listed mining and metallurgical group OM Holdings (OMH), can earn an interest in as much as 70%...Read More

Chilean miner Antofagasta produced 188,600 tonnes of copper during the first quarter of 2019, up by 22.6% from the corresponding period in 2018 because of higher throughput and ore grades, the company said on Wednesday April 24.Production was down by 14.3% from the previous quarter's record copper production of 220,000 tonnes, however, due to scheduled maintenance at the Los Pelambres and Centinel...Read More

Fastmarkets is revising the specifications for its copper concentrates treatment and refining charge (TC/RC) Asia Pacific index after a thorough consultation with a wide range of market participants. The changes in specifications will take effect from Friday April 26, following an extended market consultation that began on March 4. The index publication frequency has been increased to weekly, whil...Read More

An overview of the minor metals markets and the reasons for any price moves.Read More

Key data from the Wednesday April 24 pricing session in Europe.Key drivers The European ferro-titanium and titanium scrap markets were steady in the week to Wednesday April 24, consolidating gains made early last week, when Fastmarkets reported news of a production stoppage at UK producer FE Mottram after a fire at the company's plant in Sheffield. Alloy prices were expected to move higher in the...Read More

Key data from the Wednesday April 24 pricing session in Europe.Key drivers The European ferro-titanium and titanium scrap markets were steady in the week to Wednesday April 24, consolidating gains made early last week, when Fastmarkets reported news of a production stoppage at UK producer FE Mottram after a fire at the company's plant in Sheffield. Alloy prices were expected to move higher in the...Read More

The Turkish steel producers have continued to stay away from the deep-sea scrap markets due to weak demand for finished steel, sources said on Wednesday April 24.Demand in the country's export markets was still limited because of the safeguarding imports quotas impose by the EU, the doubled Section 232 import tariffs in the United States, and import duties in Egypt.Suppliers in the Baltic Sea regi...Read More

Trading across most of the base metals is leading to price weakness - this despite record-setting levels seen in the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite on Tuesday. The exception is aluminium, where prices have been edging higher in recent days.Asian equities give up early gains; in the US, earnings and dovish Federal Reserve sent shares to, or near to, record highsTop US officials travel to Beijing to c...Read More

The Wednesday Market Minute Global stocks edge higher, following last night's record closes on Wall Street, as investors regroup for another wave of earnings on Wall Street.A muted outlook from chipmaker Texas Instruments holds down tech stocks in Asia, while concerns over a pause in stimulus from Beijing clips markets for a second consecutive session in China.European auto stocks drift lower am...Read More

China's hot-rolled coil prices dropped on Wednesday April 24 after mills lowered offers amid weak demand and concerns over rising supply.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,990-4,000 yuan ($594-595) per tonne, down 20 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tianjin): 3,900-3,920 yuan per tonne, down 10-20 yuan per tonnePrices dropped after mills lowered offer prices in the morning session.A mill i...Read More

Export prices for Chinese cold-rolled coil were down slightly during the week to Tuesday April 23 due to limited demand in overseas markets, while export prices for hot-dipped galvanized coil rose amid a lack of availability in spot supply.Market sources said the recovery in CRC and HDG prices in 2019 could be halted in the next few weeks. Cold rolled coilFastmarkets MB's weekly export price asses...Read More

Chinese steel plate export prices were largely stable over the past week in moderate trading.Fastmarkets MB's assessment for June shipments of commercial-grade, chromium-added plate was $545-550 per tonne fob for the week ended Tuesday April 23, narrowing downward from $545-555 per tonne fob the week prior.Trading was sparse with Pakistan buyers last week, but Vietnamese buyers bought around 3,000...Read More

The price for rebar produced and delivered in Southern Europe was unchanged over the past week, amid low market activity during the Easter holidays, market participants told Fastmarkets on Wednesday April 24.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic rebar in Southern Europe was ?,?500-510 ($562-573) per tonne delivered on Wednesday, unchanged from April 17."The market is stable at that pri...Read More

The price of hollow steel sections in both the Northern and Southern European domestic markets has remained stable this week amid heavily subdued market activity caused by the Easter holiday.The majority of market participants were absent leaving trading activity thin as a result, sources told Fastmarkets. Yet despite the stable price assessment, the market fundamentals are not perfectly balanced,...Read More

The price range for rebar produced and delivered in Northern Europe has remained unchanged week on week on limited market activity, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday April 24.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic rebar in Northern Europe was ?,?535-550 ($601-618) per tonne delivered on Wednesday, unchanged from April 17.Following the long Easter weekend, a number of countries...Read More

The Turkish steel producers have continued to stay away from the deep-sea scrap markets due to weak demand for finished steel, sources said on Wednesday April 24.Demand in the country's export markets was still limited because of the safeguarding imports quotas impose by the EU, the doubled Section 232 import tariffs in the United States, and import duties in Egypt.Suppliers in the Baltic Sea regi...Read More

Iron ore prices retreated on Wednesday April 24 following a downturn in the futures and steel markets.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $93.55 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.98 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $92.33 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.98 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $95.94 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.94 per tonne. MB 58% Fe Premium Index: $83.70 per tonne...Read More

Iranian export slab prices have increased on higher offers over the past week, while billet prices and demand both fell in the wake of a renewed focus on sanctions by the United States, sources told Fastmarkets.Earlier this week, US president Donald Trump announced that he would not be renewing the exemption from sanctions on Iranian oil imports granted to several countries, in...Read More

China's domestic rebar prices maintained their downward trend on Wednesday April 24 as buyers lowered procurement rates. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 4,050-4,100 yuan ($604-610) per tonne, down 20-30 yuan per tonne Northern China (Beijing): 3,950-4,000 yuan per tonne, down 40-50 yuan per tonneRebar futures dropped further on Wednesday amid lower buying interest in the spot mar...Read More