China's domestic rebar prices continued to increase on Thursday June 3 on futures gains, but heavy rains slowed the increase compared with Wednesday's uptick, sources told Fastmarkets. DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 5,030-5,050 yuan ($787-790) per tonne, up by 30 yuan per tonne The transportation of rebar by truck and construction activity were interrupted by heavy rains in certain parts of eas...Read More
China's domestic stainless steel prices moved up over the week ended Wednesday May 2 on a strengthening of the nickel market, but demand weakened.The three-month nickel contract on the London Metal Exchange ended the official trading session on Wednesday at $18,173 per tonne, up by $975 per tonne from $17,198 per tonne a week earlier. The most-traded July nickel contract on the Shanghai Futures Ch...Read More
Key data from the pricing session in London on Thursday June 3.Key drivers: Thursday was a busy day of trading, with 41 tonnes of business captured in the pricing session. Material was transacted either side of the price range for standard grade,...Read More
The Cobalt alloy grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lbtrade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparencyinto the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies.Fastmarkets assessed Cobalt...Read More
The Cobalt standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb trade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparencyinto the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies.Fastmarkets assessed Cobalt standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb at 19.80-20.60...Read More
Ukraine's Privat Group, a major producer of manganese alloys, hit a monthly production target for May of almost 59,000 tonnes at its Nikopol ferro-alloys plant, up by about 2,000 tonnes from April amid strengthening European prices this year, an industry source said.Privat is also considering whether to start an additional silico-manganese furnace at Nikopol, which would use low-phosphorus slag as...Read More
Five grades of steel scrap will no longer need to undergo customs inspections at ports in China when they are imported into the country, beginning on June 10.But five other grades of the steelmaking raw material will undergo such inspections from the same date.China's General Administration of Customs said on Thursday June 3 that it would no longer carry out imported commodity inspections on a lis...Read More
China's Ceke Port has requested the country's customs authorities to clear only 90 trucks per day from Mongolia - instead of the typical 200 per day - from Wednesday June 2 after a truck driver tested positive for Covid-19 a day earlier, sources told Fastmarkets.Ceke Port - located in Alashan League, a division of China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region - is a major port of entry on the country's...Read More
Index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 10 points in pre-opening trade.U.S. equity futures moved slightly higher following release of the May employment report at 8:30 AM EDT. May Non-farm Payrolls were expected to increase to 671,000 from upwardly revised 278,000 in April. Actual was 559,000. May Unemployment Rate was expected to slip to 5.9% from 6.1% in April. Actual...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday June 2 that are worth another look.Recent weakness in Chinese export hot-rolled coil prices are likely to have minimal impact on prices in Turkey and the Commonwealth of Independent States - major flat steel suppliers - at least in the short term,...Read More
A summary of London Metal Exchange warrant premiums from across the globe for the week to Wednesday June 2.Please click...Read More
Nickel and zinc's three-month prices were the main metals to register small rises on June 2, while aluminium and copper futures contracts fell on a day of low volumes on the London Metal Exchange with the complex still finding its direction following a strong end to May. LME nickel's three-month price rose slightly to $18,236 per tonne on Wednesday from $18,130 per tonne on Tuesday, despite hittin...Read More
Chilean copper output fell 1.98% in April, compared to the same month of 2020, due to volume decreases from major producers like Codelco, Escondida and Los Pelambres, according to data published by the country's copper commission, Cochilco, on Wednesday June 2.The country produced 461,200 tonnes of copper in April, down from 470,500 tonnes a year before. Production also fell 5.63% from 488,700 ton...Read More
The UG2 chrome ore market rose in the week ended Tuesday June 1 after buyers' confidence was buoyed following the higher-than-expected ferro-chrome tender prices for June, while cost pressure continued to support producers' offer prices. Fastmarkets' chrome ore South Africa UG2 concentrates index basis 42%, cif China rose by $2 per tonne (1.3%) to $157 per tonne on Tuesday, from $155 per tonn...Read More
Fastmarkets has decided to revise the outlier detection method used in the calculation of its copper concentrate treatment and refining charge (TC/RC) index. Following a one-month consultation, Fastmarkets will proceed to revise the outlier detection method used in the calculation of its copper concentrate TC/RC index to reflect spot market changes. Changes will take effect on Friday June 4. The p...Read More
Key data from the pricing session in London on Wednesday June 2. Key drivers Market participants agree that demand is picking up in both Europe and Asia although this has yet to translate into a price increase and units...Read More
Turkish steel mills remained largely silent in the deep-sea scrap import markets due to continued sluggish finished steel demand in both domestic and export outlets, market participants told Fastmarkets on Wednesday June 2. Turkish steelmakers have been focusing on finished steel sales in the recent weeks in lieu of demand in Asia, while customers in the domestic market have been struggling with h...Read More
A large gap between bids and offers ensured that only limited business took place in the Japan steel scrap export market over the past week, sources said on Wednesday June 2.Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel scrap H2, export, fob main port Japan, was ?46,000-48,000 ($420-438) per tonne on Wednesday, down from ?47,000-48,500 per tonne one week earlier.Japanese H2 was heard sold to a South K...Read More
Import prices for steel scrap inched up amid slightly firmer prices for finished steel products on Wednesday June 2.Fastmarkets' daily price assessment for steel scrap, heavy recycled steel materials, cfr China, which takes into account prices at ports in eastern China, was $500-515 per tonne on Wednesday, widening upward by $5 from $500-10 per tonne on Tuesday.The most-traded rebar and hot-rolled...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange and Shanghai Futures Exchange were mixed this morning, Wednesday June 2 - zinc and tin prices were up on both exchanges and were looking robust, while the others have lost recent upward momentum. Brent crude oil is back above $70 per barrel, the highest it has been for two years. Tuesday's manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) data for...Read More