Indian hot rolled coil export prices slumped by $65 per tonne at the top end of the range on Friday September 17, on lower-priced bookings to Vietnam, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel hot-rolled coil (commodity) export, fob main port India was $840-845 per tonne on Friday, down by $5-65 per...Read More
Demand for ferrous scrap imports among Vietnamese steelmakers surged in the week to Friday September 17 amid healthy order books for billet exports.A 20,000-tonne bulk cargo of heavy melting scrap 1&2 (80:20) from the United States West Coast was sold at $505 per tonne cfr Vietnam to an induction furnace-based steelmaker on Monday, a few market sources told Fastmarkets.The cargo also includes 10,0...Read More
The upward trend in China's domestic rebar prices came to an end on Friday September 17, mainly due to a drop in demand for replenishment stocks, sources told Fastmarkets.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 5,580-5,620 yuan ($865-871) per tonne, unchangedNorthern China (Beijing) weekly assessment: 5,300-5,340 yuan per tonne, up by 50-60 yuan per tonneEnd-user demand in eastern China was stable on Fr...Read More
Base metals price movements on the London Metal Exchange were mixed on Friday September 17 following a week marked by volatility, with copper, nickel and lead down, the last-named having been under selling pressure for most of the past five days.Nickel's three-month price reached $20,245 per tonne on Friday, while its volumes were at their highest since the start of the week, with more than 11,400...Read More
Base metals prices on the LME and SHFE were mixed on the morning of Friday September 17, with most remaining listless despite being buffeted by a firmer US dollar, generally weaker economic data and disruption to both production and supply.Broader markets were quiet but firmer heading into the weekend and China's Mid-Autumn Festival holiday takes place on Monday and TuesdayBase metalsThree-month b...Read More
Brazil's pig iron export market was firm over the week to Friday September 17, with long lead times after active selling to the United States and China through the first half of September, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' price assessment for pig iron, export, fob port of Vitoria/Rio, Brazil, was $480-500 per tonne on Friday, narrowing upward from $475-500 per tonne a week earlier.The latest...Read More
Brazilian aluminium smelter Albras expects to double its output of primary foundry alloy (PFA) in 2021 over the volume in 2020, and to reach 10,000 tonnes by the end of the year, the company said on Wednesday September 15.Albras launched PFA products in 2019, and has invested in technology and workforce skill qualification to increase output in each year since then.One of the newest examples, it s...Read More
Increasing steel production rates in Japan are making Japanese yards increasingly reluctant to offer cargoes to China, market sources told Fastmarkets this week. Better margins to be found in Japan's domestic marketTaiwan continues to chase containerized cargoesContainer scrap offers to Bangladesh fall amid sluggish demandChinaA slowdown in downstream demand has continued to weight on spot demand...Read More
London Metal Exchange base-metals prices were mostly lower at the 5pm close of trading on Thursday September 16, with a rise in the US dollar and the intended release of more metal from China's reserves weighing on the complex.The US Dollar Index reached its highest on Thursday since August 27, with an intraday high of 92.97. The index was well bid, with investors expecting a hawkish view from the...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday September 16 that are worth another look....Read More
Steel rebar and billet buyers in Egypt are waiting for prices to fall further before placing orders, sources told Fastmarkets.Global billet and rebar prices have recently been weakening; buyers in Egypt are waiting for prices to flatten before placing orders.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel billet import, cfr main port Turkey was $610-620 per tonne on September 16, falling from $620-...Read More
The Russian government is considering a near-threefold rise in the minerals extraction tax (MET) on iron ore from 2022 in order to balance the federal budget, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday September 15.The current MET on conditioned ores of ferrous metals in Russia is applied at 16.8%. This is calculated from a fixed base rate of 4.8% multiplied by a coefficient, which is currently 3.5, ac...Read More
Domestic prices for steel wire rod in Italy have widened downward over the past seven days amid sluggish buying, a decline in scrap prices and the availability of cheap imports, Fastmarkets heard on Wednesday September 15.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel wire rod (mesh quality), domestic, delivered southern Europe, was ?,?800-845 ($945-998) per tonne on Wednesday, widening downward b...Read More
Deliveries of stainless steel in China have been disrupted by an outbreak of Covid-19 in the major production hub of Fujian, but the resultant tightened supply failed to support stainless steel prices in the week ended Wednesday September 15.DomesticStainless steel cold-rolled coil 2mm grade 304 domestic (Wuxi): 19,000-19,700 ($2,949-3,057) per tonne, down by 300-500 yuan per tonne from a week ear...Read More
The largest steelmakers in Bangladesh were largely out of the market for containers of steel scrap on Thursday September 16 following recent deep-sea cargo bookings, market participants have told Fastmarkets.In deals done last week, two deep-sea cargoes were booked to a mill in Bangladesh from the United States West Coast at $530 per tonne cfr for shredded, while a second mill booked deep-sea mate...Read More
The largest steelmakers in Bangladesh were largely out of the market for containers of steel scrap on Thursday September 16 following recent deep-sea cargo bookings, market participants have told Fastmarkets.In deals done last week, two deep-sea cargoes were booked to a mill in Bangladesh from the United States West Coast at $530 per tonne cfr for shredded, while a second mill booked deep-sea mate...Read More
London Metal Exchange base-metals prices were mostly lower at the 5pm close of trading on Thursday September 16, with a rise in the US dollar and the intended release of more metal from China's reserves weighing on the complex.The US Dollar Index reached its highest on Thursday since August 27, with an intraday high of 92.97. The index was well bid, with investors expecting a hawkish view from the...Read More
Trading activity remained slow in the European hot-rolled coil market on Thursday September 16 because buyers held back from deals while they wait for a clearer price trend, sources told Fastmarkets.Buyers are waiting for the new quota period, which will start on October 1. Market sources said that large volumes of steel products are sitting in European Union ports awaiting customs clearance at th...Read More
Steelmaker Arvedi is in the process of purchasing fellow Italian stainless steel producer Acciai Speciali Terni (AST) from Thyssenkrupp, the German steelmaker said on Thursday September 16.The sale, which is subject to approval by Thyssenkrupp's supervisory board and merger control clearance, also includes associated sales organizations in Germany, Italy and Turkey. The sale is expected to be comp...Read More
Turkish steel mills withdrew from the deep-sea scrap markets after booking several cargoes for October shipment, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday September 16.Turkish steelmakers have booked at least five deep-sea cargoes so far in the reported week from the United States, Canada and Baltic Sea. Market participants generally agree that most steelmakers in the country have replenished their sto...Read More