The Russian government has approved temporary export duties on 340 steel and non-ferrous metals sold outside the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), which are set to take effect from August 1 through December 31, according to an official government decree. The duties, which are intended to control inflation of metal prices domestically, are expected to raise approximately 160 billion rubles ($2.2...Read More
The German steel industry has called for further support and policy after the Climate Protection Emergency Program 2022, and for the program to widen its scope to other material alternatives, Fastmarkets learns.The steel scrap association BDSV criticized the Climate Protection Emergency Program 2022 which heavily focused on hydrogen-based steel production for green steel manufacture, and not steel...Read More
Chinese cobalt producer Hanrui Cobalt has applied to launch an initial public offering (IPO) of its shares on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong, the company said on Friday June 25.The company aims to strengthen its leading position in the global cobalt industry and deepen upstream and downstream integration amid growing opportunities in the new energy vehicles (NEVs) sector driven by carbon neutral...Read More
Lithium iron phosphate batteries have recently regained their position as the preferred option among original equipment manufacturers in China, casting doubt on the forecast dominance of the alternative nickel-cobalt-manganese lithium-ion batteries in the country's electric vehicle battery supply chain.The situation has also raised questions about whether the change in sentiment would be mirrored...Read More
Key data from the Friday June 25 pricing session in London and Beijing.Key drivers Cobalt hydroxide payables held steady last week, but some suppliers were considering pushing these up on rising prices for cobalt salts downstream - which had been trending upward since the middle of June - and growing optimism amid continual increases in benchmark metal prices. Chinese...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Monday June 28 that are worth another look....Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Europe increased in the week to Friday June 25, despite slower trading activity in the market with buyers holding back from making new deals.At the end of last week, ArcelorMittal increased its offers for coil products by ?,?30 ($36) per tonne across Europe. New offers for HRC reached ?,?1,200 ($1,432) per tonne ex-works, with offers on cold-rolled and hot-di...Read More
The domestic nickel pig iron (NPI) price rose in the week to Friday June 25 in an active spot market while the ferro-nickel price also went up due to a bullish stainless steel outlook, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets assessed the price of nickel pig iron, high-grade NPI content 10-15%, spot, ddp China at 1,200-1,210 yuan ($185.50-187.10) per nickel unit on Friday, up by 15-25 yuan (1.7%)...Read More
South Africa will move to an adjusted alert level 4 lockdown for 14 days from Monday June 28, President Cyril Ramaphosa said in an address to the nation on Sunday June 27. The move was in response to a massive resurgence of infections and continual mutation of the Covid-19 virus into new variants, according to Ramaphosa."The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention reports that a third wa...Read More
China is considering adding 5% across the board to existing export taxes on ferro-alloys from Thursday July 1, market sources told Fastmarkets, adding that if that happens manganese flake prices will rise.Manganese flake is extremely sensitive to what happens in China - since it produces 95% of the world's supply - and the spot price is already at a 13-year high in Europe and close to its highest...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices maintained their upward momentum on Monday June 28 on expectations of tighter supply, though demand was affected by rain across regions on the southern side of the Yangtze River.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 4,860-4,880 yuan ($752-755) per tonne, up by 10-20 yuan per tonneSteelmakers in China's steel hub of Tangshan in the northern region have been instructed to l...Read More
The biggest steel producer in the United Arab Emirates, Emirates Steel, decreased its rebar price by 55 dirhams ($14.97) per tonne with effect from Sunday June 27. The company is offering rebar at 3,012 dirhams per tonne ex-works, down from 3,067 dirhams per tonne ex-works. This is the first rebar price...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Monday June 28 that are worth another look....Read More
Iron ore prices increased on Monday June 28 even while market participants prepare for stricter restrictions on sintering, blast furnace operations and transportation of raw materials from June 29 to July 1 in certain areas in China. Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $218.62 per tonne, up $2.17 per tonne 62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $220.77 per tonne, up $2.02 per t...Read More
Domestic prices for steel rebar in Russia's Central Federal district around Moscow rose in the week to June 28 on increased offers from local mills, sources told Fastmarkets.July offers from NLMK were heard at 72,500 ($1,004) roubles per tonne, up from 69,500 for June.Severstal was offering July-delivery rebar at 75,000 roubles per tonne cpt, sources said, unchanged from June.Tula Steel offered re...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Monday June 28 that are worth another look....Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were weaker on the morning of Monday June 28, while those on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were more mixed. Spread of Delta variant of Covid-19 across parts of Southeast Asia, Australia and South Africa causing concern about a 4th waveBase metalsLME three-month base metals prices, with the exception of tin that was untraded, were down across the boar...Read More
Seaborne iron ore concentrate and pellet prices fell in the week ended Friday June 25 due to a weaker demand outlook for steel, sources said. Fastmarkets iron ore indices Pellet premium over 65% Fe fines, cfr China: $62 per tonne, down $0.40 66% Fe concentrate, cfr Qingdao: $241.32 per tonne, down $1.31 65% Fe blast furnace pellet, cfr Qingdao: $300.81 per tonne, down $4.11 Key drivers Sentiment w...Read More
Flat steel market in Russia's Central Federal District in Moscow was broadly flat in the week to Monday June 28 with most producers preferred to roll over their price into July amid softer trading activity while buyers assessed the impact of recently introduced export duties on the domestic market. Russia on June 25 approved export duties on 340 metal products, including hot-rolled steel, effectiv...Read More
Tin was the best performer on the London Metal Exchange during trading on Monday June 28, while the rest of the complex was mixed at the start of the new week with particularly low volumes for copper's three-month contract. Tin's three-month price increased by 1.2% to $31,152 per tonne on Monday at the close from Friday's $30,774 per tonne price. The metal rose to as much as $31,220 per tonne dur...Read More