Futures prices on the London Metal Exchange were mixed at the close on Monday June 14, with a quiet day of trading for such metals as copper due to the Dragon Boat Festival holiday observed in China. Nickel logged the biggest price gain on Monday, with the three-month contract rising by 1.39% to $18,480 per tonne from Friday's closing price of $18,227 per tonne and by 3.29% from the...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday June 14 that are worth another look.Brazilian steelmaker Usiminas will restart its No2 blast furnace (BF) at the Ipatinga mill, in southeastern Minas Gerais state, after almost eight months of downtime, the company said in a filing...Read More
Activity in the European hot-rolled coil market has slowed significantly, with buyers holding back from making new deals and only a few producers making offers, sources told Fastmarkets on Monday June 14.Buyers have only been buying limited volumes if they have specific restocking needs or if they can secure back-to-back deals, they added.European distributors prefer to wait for the price trend to...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Europe declined in the week to Friday June 11, but they remained at a high level.Buyers have been holding back from acquiring large volumes of coil at high prices, preferring whenever possible to pause their purchases to better monitor global trends while also waiting for the European Commission (EC) to conclude its safeguarding investigation.On Friday, the E...Read More
Activity in the European hot-rolled coil market has slowed significantly, with buyers holding back from making new deals and only a few producers making offers, sources told Fastmarkets on Monday June 14.Buyers have only been buying limited volumes if they have specific restocking needs or if they can secure back-to-back deals, they added.European distributors prefer to wait for the price trend to...Read More
With long steel prices in Europe reaching historically high levels, construction activity is slowing in some regions due to reduced supplies and delays, with some market sources fearing a decline in industrial activity long term.Surging pricesLong steel prices in the European Union started increasing in the third quarter of 2020 on a pick-up in consumption and a recovery from the impact of the Cov...Read More
Zinc concentrate treatment charges (TCs) edged higher in mid-June, with more material from mines in China and elsewhere boosting supplies, while the power cut problems that affected smelters in Yunnan province are seemingly resolved.Terms rise with smelters well-coveredTenders hit solid market prices Mining output rise boosts supplyFastmarkets' zinc spot concentrate TC, cif China rose to $70-85 pe...Read More
Fastmarkets has settled its premium for the supply of aluminium to main Japanese ports (MJP) in the third quarter of 2021 at $172-185 per tonne over the London Metal Exchange cash price. The premium is 20.20% higher than the second-quarter benchmark of $148-149 per tonne and more than double the third-quarter of 2020 which settled at $75-79 per tonne cif MJP. The premium has risen for th...Read More
The three-month price of copper was down 0.6% from Friday's close on the morning of Monday June 14, while most other prices on the London Metal Exchange rose despite low traded volumes due to public holidays in China and Australia.The three-month copper price was at $9,943 per tonne on Monday at 9am, falling from $10,003.50 per tonne at Friday's close, which was the first time the metal had closed...Read More
Zinc concentrate treatment charges (TCs) edged higher in mid-June, with more material from mines in China and elsewhere boosting supplies, while the power cut problems that affected smelters in Yunnan province are seemingly resolved.Terms rise with smelters well-coveredTenders hit solid market prices Mining output rise boosts supplyFastmarkets' zinc spot concentrate TC, cif China rose to $70-85 pe...Read More
Tungsten West is in the "advanced stages" of preparing its initial public offering in London's AIM market, with production at the Hemerdon mine to start next year.The UK-based tin and tungsten mining company acquired the Hemerdon mine, located in the south west of England, in 2019. The mine has a projected output of 3,800 tonnes per year of contained tungsten and 500 tpy of contained tin, and shou...Read More
There was little liquidity in the iron ore market on Monday June 14 due to Chinese market participants being away for the Dragonboat Festival. Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $220.77 per tonne, up $1.51 per tonne 62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $221.62 per tonne, up $0.37 per tonne 58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $195.22 per tonne, up $2.44 per tonne 65...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.This month's key North American steel forecast highlights:?EUR? US sheet prices hit record highs again in May, with upward momentum persisting into June. Actual US hot-rolled coil prices averaged $1,553 per ton in May, largely in line with our forecast of $1,540 per ton. Prices remain supported by strong underlying sup...Read More
The three-month price of copper was down 0.6% from Friday's close on the morning of Monday June 14, while most other prices on the London Metal Exchange rose despite low traded volumes due to public holidays in China and Australia.The three-month copper price was at $9,943 per tonne on Monday at 9am, falling from $10,003.50 per tonne at Friday's close, which was the first time the metal had closed...Read More
Metals continue to languish in high ground during morning trading on Monday June 14, with tin being the exception as it continues to push higher on strong fundamentals due to supply disruptions. Broader markets generally upbeat with some, including the S&P 500 Index, near record highs. US 10-year treasury yields have fallen, not on haven buying, but because the market seems more sure that central...Read More
The price of ferro-titanium scrap in the United States has fallen for the first time since August 2020 following a push-back by ferro-titanium manufacturers who are facing weaker US prices for their products, some market sources said.Just over a month ago, scrap prices were reportedly rising by 5-10% week on week amid an extreme shortage related to a decline in aircraft building during the Covid-1...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.This month's key North American steel forecast highlights:?EUR? US sheet prices hit record highs again in May, with upward momentum persisting into June. Actual US hot-rolled coil prices averaged $1,553 per ton in May, largely in line with our forecast of $1,540 per ton. Prices remain supported by strong underlying sup...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday June 14 that are worth another look.Brazilian steelmaker Usiminas will restart its No2 blast furnace (BF) at the Ipatinga mill, in southeastern Minas Gerais state, after almost eight months of downtime, the company said in a filing...Read More
Canada-based Nouveau Monde plans to recycle its active anode graphite flake while developing its sustainable graphite project, company founder Eric Desaulniers has told Fastmarkets.Nouveau Monde has set up a partnership with lithium-ion battery recycling company Lithion Recycling, also based in Canada, to reclaim the graphite that would normally be unusable when battery anode materials are recycle...Read More
Manganese ore prices dropped on Friday June 11 after buyers in China staged resistance to rising offer prices from miners and liquidity decreased. Fastmarkets' index for manganese ore 44% Mn, cif Tianjin was calculated at $5.12 per dry metric tonne (dmtu) on Friday, down by 3.21% from $5.29 per dmtu a week earlier.Fastmarkets' manganese ore index 37% Mn, cif Tianjin edged down by 0.21% t...Read More