Zinc producers in China's southwestern province of Yunnan should be able to fully resume their operations by mid-June, sources said.Yunnan will remove its power restrictions by the end of June that have stunted local zinc output, the provincial energy bureau said.A few zinc smelters in Yunnan have already resumed production, however, sources that spoke to Fastmarkets said.Production capa...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.Fastmarkets analysts were invited to present our outlook for the coking coal market at Coaltrans Asia, held online on November 23-25. One of the key topics at the event was the trade tensions between China and Australia, which overtook Mongolia to become the largest coking coal exporter to China this year...Read More
Poor sentiment persisted in the European hot-rolled coil market on Tuesday September 28 due to reduced demand from automakers, sufficient distributor stocks and high import volumes in ports, sources told Fastmarkets.Spot buyers have been refraining from making new deals; they anticipate that domestic prices will continue to decrease. Buyer stocks remain sufficient, allowing them to pause purchases...Read More
Eight of the nine Category 1 members of the London Metal Exchange have indicated their support for continuing to trade official lunchtime prices in the open-outcry ring.Does this mean that one company does not support ring trading? And could one of the exchange's members be preparing to leave the trading floor?The exchange revealed on Monday August 9 that it had majority support for the ring, in a...Read More
Domestic steel rebar prices in Russia's Central Federal District around Moscow were largely unchanged in the week ended Monday September 27, amid high purchasing interest from distributors with low inventories and an expectation that prices have reached a bottom, sources told Fastmarkets. Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, cpt Moscow, Russia was...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Tuesday September 28 that are worth another look.The Brazilian steel and aluminium sectors are preparing for a period of short electricity supply in the coming months due to a persistent drought in a...Read More
Inner Mongolia, China's ferro-chrome production heartland, has imposed restrictions on its metallurgical sector in a move that has fueled the high-carbon ferro-chrome markets in China and Europe, and although this may ease off, the gains were unlikely to be lost while alloy ramp-ups continue, sources have told Fastmarkets.The decision to restrict energy consumption in Inner Mongolia since December...Read More
Further reductions in Chinese steel mill operations due to ongoing power shortages are likely to hamper demand for imported semi-finished steel and steel scrap in the country, sources told Fastmarkets this week.Draconian restrictions on power supplies in China have led to a raft of electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmakers and re-rollers in key provinces such as Jiangsu, Yunnan and Zhejiang to either...Read More
(Updates number of rescued workers) Sept 28 (Reuters) - Vale SA said on Tuesday that35 of its employees who were trapped in a Canadian mine hadreturned to the surface and four more were on their way out.On Monday, the Brazilian miner said 39 mine workers had beentrapped underground since Sunday at its Totten mine in Sudbury,Canada. Vale said earlier on Tuesday it expected all employees tosurface b...Read More
Prices for seaborne iron ore concentrate and pellets fell further in the week ended Friday September 24 amid thin trading caused by weak demand attributed to a public holiday in China last week.Fastmarkets iron ore indicesPellet premium over 65% Fe fines, cfr China: $37.20 per tonne, up $3.50 per tonne66% Fe concentrate, cfr Qingdao: $125.70 per tonne, down $9.84 per tonne65% Fe blast furnace pell...Read More
Fastmarkets proposes changes to the name and specifications of its UG2 chrome ore price index.Fastmarkets proposes to change the specification for its chrome ore South Africa UG2 concentrates index basis 42%, cif China to include MG material and to amend some qualities, including to clarify a base chrome iron ratio and to implement a normalization process to meet this base level. Fastmarkets...Read More
Base metals prices were mainly lower on the London Metal Exchange and mixed on the Shanghai Futures Exchange on Monday September 27, while the broader markets looked more positive.Higher oil prices are adding to inflationary concerns......US 10-year treasuries yields rise to levels not seen since JulyBase metalsThree-month base metals prices on the LME were mainly weaker this morning, with the exc...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday September 27 that are worth another look.Brazil's Usiminas is halting its No2 blast furnace at Ipatinga for another 90-150 days after an incident on Friday, the flat steel producer said on Monday September 27.For aluminium market participants...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday September 27 that are worth another look.Brazil's Usiminas is halting its No2 blast furnace at Ipatinga for another 90-150 days after an incident on Friday, the flat steel producer said on Monday September 27.For aluminium market participants...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices increased on Monday September 27 because pre-holiday restocking activities at China's ports boosted market sentiment after price declines in the past two weeks.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $119.31 per tonne, up $7.98 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $121.10 per tonne, up $7.32 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $...Read More
Fastmarkets proposes changes to the name and specifications of its UG2 chrome ore price index.Fastmarkets proposes to change the specification for its chrome ore South Africa UG2 concentrates index basis 42%, cif China to include MG material and to amend some qualities, including to clarify a base chrome iron ratio and to implement a normalization process to meet this base level. Fastmarkets...Read More
Australian miner AVZ Minerals Limited has signed a transaction implementation agreement with China's Suzhou CATH Energy Technologies to jointly develop the Manono Lithium and Tin Project in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the Australian miner said on Monday September 27.CATH is a private investment entity jointly owned by Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL) and Shenzhen-listed Suzhou TA...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday September 27 that are worth another look.Brazil's Usiminas is halting its No2 blast furnace at Ipatinga for another 90-150 days after an incident on Friday, the flat steel producer said on Monday September 27.For aluminium market participants...Read More
Seaborne coking coal cfr prices decreased on Monday September 27 due to market participants' expectations of lower demand in the coming months.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $594.56 per tonne, down $6.26 per tonneHard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $529.82 per tonne, down $45.41 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $406.07 per tonne, up $0.08 per tonneHard coking co...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday September 27 that are worth another look.Brazil's Usiminas is halting its No2 blast furnace at Ipatinga for another 90-150 days after an incident on Friday, the flat steel producer said on Monday September 27.For aluminium market participants...Read More