SHANGHAI, Mar 7 (SMM) –Copper: The support at the 40-day moving average, or 52,000 yuan/mt, remained for SHFE copper, while destocking in China helped the bullish sentiment somewhat. We expect copper prices to go up further with SHFE 1805 at 52,500-53,000 yuan/mt today and LME copper at $6,960-7,020/mt. Spot discounts are expected to be smaller as sellers continued to hold on to their cargoe...Read More
SHANGHAI, Mar 7 (SMM) –Copper: The support at the 40-day moving average, or 52,000 yuan/mt, remained for SHFE copper, while destocking in China helped the bullish sentiment somewhat. We expect copper prices to go up further with SHFE 1805 at 52,500-53,000 yuan/mt today and LME copper at $6,960-7,020/mt. Spot discounts are expected to be smaller as sellers continued to hold on to their cargoe...Read More
SHANGHAI, Mar 7 (SMM) –Copper: The support at the 40-day moving average, or 52,000 yuan/mt, remained for SHFE copper, while destocking in China helped the bullish sentiment somewhat. We expect copper prices to go up further with SHFE 1805 at 52,500-53,000 yuan/mt today and LME copper at $6,960-7,020/mt. Spot discounts are expected to be smaller as sellers continued to hold on to their cargoe...Read More
The restriction on imports of some copper scrap products to China has already caused the industry to make some process changes but many questions are still unanswered, a panel of scrap experts said at the Metal Bulletin Copper conference.The number of licenses granted by the Chinese government for copper scrap imports dropped by 94% year on year to account for 136,685 tonnes in the first two...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange slumped by the 5pm close on Wednesday March 7, with uncertainty stemming from the latest developments over the US' Section 232 probe leading to a sell-off.Aluminium was the most traded metal of the complex today, with more than 20,000 lots changing hands by the close. Its price fell 1.6% - it concluded below support at $2,100 per tonne.The cash/three...Read More
Comex copper prices dipped in the US morning on Wednesday March 7 with a confluence of bearish signals, including a potential trade war and higher dollar, weighing on the base metals complex. Copper for May settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 2.80 cents or 0.9% to $3.1310 per lb. "Most of the base metals remain on a back footing this morning and that seems to...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were lower across the board during morning trading on Wednesday March 7 - with nickel diving 1.6%.The three-month nickel price is continuing to have another rollercoaster month - it gained $260 per tonne at the close on Tuesday but is now trading $275 lower. "The new threat of trade wars and regional tariffs seems to have [unnerved] consumers in the...Read More
China announced that it had terminated steel production in all the country's illegal induction furnaces by the end of June last year. The majority of the operators in China are primarily small size private mills that use low quality scrap to produce substandard rebar. These rebars are mixed with grade III (HRB400) rebar and sold at a discount to construction contractors. For a long period, the gov...Read More
Prices for rebar produced and delivered in Southern Europe narrowed upward by ?,?15 ($19) per tonne this week amid higher scrap costs and milder weather conditions across the continent, sources told Metal Bulletin."All of the mills in Spain are pushing up their prices. Raw materials [costs] are up and I believe that scrap [prices] will bounce again. I think the market will keep rising," one Southe...Read More
Prices for rebar produced and delivered in Northern Europe have remained stable over the past seven days despite better demand for the material, market participants told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday March 7.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for domestic rebar in Northern Europe was ?,?550-570 ($681-705) per tonne delivered on Wednesday, unchanged week-on-week."Business is picking...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange slumped by the 5pm close on Wednesday March 7, with uncertainty stemming from the latest developments over the US' Section 232 probe leading to a sell-off.Aluminium was the most traded metal of the complex today, with more than 20,000 lots changing hands by the close. Its price fell 1.6% - it concluded below support at $2,100 per tonne.The cash/three...Read More
Nickel premiums in Europe crept higher on Tuesday March 7 on tight availability and declining London Metal Exchange nickel stocks, while Asian nickel premiums were stable due to the sustained negative arbitrage in China and amid slow trading activity. European nickel premiums higher due to tight availability Quiet trading activity reported in both China and other Asian regions US nick...Read More
Fears about a looming aluminium duty from the United States' Section 232 investigations have dashed hopes of the market taking advantage of a widening import aluminium arbitrage between Asia and the US. The differential between canceling aluminium from London Metal Exchange warehouses in Asia and shipping the material into the US Midwest has reached an all-time high, but the market is skepti...Read More
Around 2.5 million tonnes of copper output is exposed to high disruption risks this year in Chile, the country's copper commission said at Metal Bulletin's International Copper conference in Madrid on Wednesday March 7. The figure represents 43.4% of the total forecast output for 2018 from the world's top copper producing country, Jorge Cantallopts, director of public planning and research with Co...Read More
Comex copper prices dipped in the US morning on Wednesday March 7 with a confluence of bearish signals, including a potential trade war and higher dollar, weighing on the base metals complex. Copper for May settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 2.80 cents or 0.9% to $3.1310 per lb. "Most of the base metals remain on a back footing this morning and that seems to...Read More
Tin premiums for standard 300ppm purity held in all region in the latest assessment on Tuesday March 6 on rising exports from Indonesia and low buying interest, while rates for low-lead tin retreated further from record highs after supply also improved. 99.9% tin premiums stable in Europe, the United States and China Indonesia's ICDX volume for exports up a third in February from January&nb...Read More
The latest metal markets news and price moves to start the North American day on Wednesday March 7.Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were lower across the board during morning trading- with nickel diving 1.6%.Here's how prices looked at 12:07 London time:Read our live futures report here. "Most of the base metals remain on a back footing this morning and that seems to be a resul...Read More
European steel association Eurofer supports the plan announced by the European Commission (EC) to counter the trade sanctions to be introduced by the United States under its Section 232 rules.The EU is ready to react proportionately and fully, in line with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, if the US measures are formalized and are seen to affect the EU's economic interests, the EC said.US Pres...Read More
Domestic prices for heavy steel plate in Southern Europe have increased over the past week, reflecting rising slab costs, sources told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday March 7.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for domestic grade-S235JR heavy steel plate in Southern Europe was ?,?580-590 ($718-730) per tonne ex-works on Wednesday, up by ?,?10 per tonne week-on-week.The assessment reflected "worka...Read More
Iranian export prices for steel billet and slab continued to rise in the week ended Wednesday March 7 with bookings agreed at higher prices, supported by the upward trend in the global market and reduced availability of the materials.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for Iranian billet exports narrowed upward to $518-520 per tonne fob on March 7, against $510-520 per tonne fob a week earlie...Read More