Trafigura is preparing to table an offer for Brazilian miner Vale's embattled nickel and cobalt operations (VNC) in the French territory of New Caledonia in the South Pacific, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday October 20.Fastmarkets understands that the Geneva, Switzerland-headquartered trading house is part of a consortium with four French companies.A source said that current negotiations...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States have remained steady above $33.50 per hundredweight ($670 per short ton); meanwhile, market activity has slowed, with buyers waiting to purchase more material amid expected additional increases and rising offer prices.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated $33.57 per cwt ($671.40 per ton) on Wednesday October...Read More
Low demand for heavy steel plate in Europe did not allow steelmakers to achieve their targeted price increases and threatened instead to drag prices downward, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday October 21.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel domestic plate, 8-40mm, exw Southern Europe, was unchanged at ?,?460-470 ($543-555) per tonne on October 21.The assessment reflected achievable p...Read More
Domestic prices for steel cold-rolled coil in Europe were fairly stable in the week to Wednesday October 21 with buyers continuing to monitor the market, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel CRC, domestic, exw Northern Europe, was ?,?570-590 ($673-696) per tonne on October 21, compared with ?,?570-580 per tonne a week earlier.The assessment reflected "workable" p...Read More
Wire rod prices in the United States have inched slightly higher month on month due to increasing demand while imported wire rod prices again remained flat.Fastmarkets' monthly price assessment for steel wire rod (low carbon) industrial quality, fob mill US rose by 0.8% to $31.25-32.25 per hundredweight ($625-645 per short ton) on Tuesday October 20 from $31-32 per cwt previously.Fastmarkets' pric...Read More
The price of hollow steel sections in Europe increased sharply this week while mills continue to push for and achieve higher prices, market sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday October 21.Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel sections (medium), domestic, delivered Northern Europe was ?,?630-650 ($744-767)per tonne on Wednesday, up from?,?600-630 per tonne one week previous. "Demand is okay, the...Read More
The price of steel H-beams in Europe remained unchanged this week with the market beginning to stagnate after a dip in momentum, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday October 21.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel beams, domestic, delivered Northern Europe, was ?,?540-570 ($637-672) per tonne on Wednesday, unchanged from the previous assessment. Beam producers previously announced...Read More
Turkish steel mills continued their silence in the deep-sea scrap market for a third day this week, with participants now split on the direction prices will take, sources said on Wednesday October 21.After a third day without any new bookings, sources began to speculate on the direction prices might go.Some told Fastmarkets they were expecting prices to move up, despite the mil...Read More
Iron ore futures gained again on Wednesday October 21, following an uptrend in steel futures amid a drop in steel inventories, with the seaborne market remaining stable on limited trading activity, sources said. Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $120.49 per tonne, up $0.88 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $120.64 per tonne, up $0.59 per tonne58% Fe fi...Read More
Iranian steel slab producers reduced their asking prices for export sales in the week ended Wednesday October 21 on a lack of customer interest in some major outlets.Khouzestan Steel, one of the country's major slab producers, reduced its price to $440 per tonne fob Southern Iranian ports from $450 per tonne fob a week earlier."Slab is subject to tough negotiations. Clients are afraid to buy, even...Read More
The arrival of lower-priced cargoes and weakening downstream demand weighed on the market for UG2 chrome ore in China in the week ended Tuesday October 20, although liquidity was light.Fastmarkets' chrome ore South Africa UG2 concentrates index, basis 42%, cif China, fell by $4 per tonne (-2.9%) to $135 per tonne on Tuesday, from $139 per tonne a week earlier."More people are looking to sell than...Read More
A global boom in home appliance sales during the Covid-19 pandemic is causing a shortage in flat steel supplies in China, and in turn supporting prices, Fastmarkets has heard.Jiang Yuan, deputy director of the Department of Industrial Statistics at the country's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), said that China's output of home appliances including fridges and ovens rose by more than 26% year-o...Read More
The European Commission (EC) has opened an anti-dumping (AD) probe into imports of steel wind towers originating in China, the commission said on Wednesday October 21.The investigation started after the European Wind Tower Association lodged a complaint on behalf of European producers on March 17 - the association represents more than 25% of the total European production of steel wind towers.The p...Read More
Crude steel output in Germany continued to fall in September but the pace of decline is slowing, while output from electric-arc furnaces (EAFs) has shown positive dynamics for the first time since February, German steel federation WV Stahl said on Wednesday October 21. Crude steel production in Germany has been declining since the beginning of 2020 due to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on th...Read More
Novolipietsk Steel (NLMK) - the largest steel producer in Russia - will start the rolling mill modernization at its Belgian subsidiary NLMK Clabecq, the company said on Tuesday October 20.A ?,?30 million ($35 million) plate rolling mill upgrade will include the installation of a new descaling system with two new descalers and the modernization of the four-stand finishing mill, NLMK said.Despite th...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday October 21 that are worth another look....Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States have remained steady above $33.50 per hundredweight ($670 per short ton); meanwhile, market activity has slowed, with buyers waiting to purchase more material amid expected additional increases and rising offer prices.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated $33.57 per cwt ($671.40 per ton) on Wednesday October...Read More
A summary of London Metal Exchange warrant premiums from across the globe for the week to Wednesday October 21.Please click...Read More
Low demand for heavy steel plate in Europe did not allow steelmakers to achieve their targeted price increases and threatened instead to drag prices downward, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday October 21.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel domestic plate, 8-40mm, exw Southern Europe, was unchanged at ?,?460-470 ($543-555) per tonne on October 21.The assessment reflected achievable p...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday October 21 that are worth another look....Read More