Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange and Shanghai Futures Exchange were mixed during the morning of Thursday May 27, as were broader markets - are these pauses, or early signs of a stall?More US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) members seem to be getting off the fence about talking about tapering Chinese yuan continues to strengthen, is China using the yuan to reduce inflationary pr...Read More
Four key takeaways from the 6th China International LiCoNi Summit in Changsha, China, on May 20-21, 2021.1. Weak nickel market sentiment now but long-term positive Sentiment remained weak among domestic market participants at the conference because they think both the mild hawkish stance evident in the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) minutes and the statement from China's State Council that...Read More
Battery manufacturers in China have aggressively cut their orders for lithium cobalt oxide (LCO) cathode materials in the second quarter, with the move weighing on lithium and cobalt prices, market sources told Fastmarkets.LCO batteries are widely used in consumer electronics, including smart phones, laptops, and tablets among others.A leading electronics battery manufacturer in China will cut its...Read More
China's relentless "suggestions" to industry that it wants to see stable commodity prices appear to have suppressed speculative behavior and are beginning to cool bullish market conditions, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday May 27.Rising commodity prices were highlighted for the third time in 14 days, on Wednesday May 26, during the the weekly executive meeting of China's State Council, le...Read More
Iron ore prices went fell on Thursday May 27, due to limited demand in the seaborne market and at Chinese ports.Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $189.73 per tonne, down $3.14 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $190.90 per tonne, down $3.59 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $162.38 per tonne, down $2.64 per tonne65% Fe Brazil-origin fines, cf...Read More
Import prices for steel scrap in China weakened further on Thursday May 27 amid a continued lack of buying interest, sources told Fastmarkets.The continued price drop came despite the most-traded rebar and hot-rolled coil futures contracts on the Shanghai Futures Exchange inching up on May 27 after more than a week of consecutive losses.Fastmarkets' daily price assessment for steel scrap...Read More
Lack of support on the customer side led to a further slide in CIS steel billet export prices in the week to Thursday May 27, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' daily steel billet index, export, fob Black Sea, CIS dropped to $659 per tonne on Thursday, down by $11 per tonne day on day.Interest in import billet from the part of China, which had been the main outlet for CIS-origin material remain...Read More
Canada will seek to work with its allies and partners to develop supply chains that will help them to meet global climate goals, according to the associate deputy minister at the Department of Natural Resources Canada (NRCan).Shawn Tupper said that this will include building mineral value chains and downstream processing, products and technologies, and leveraging mining practices, to position Cana...Read More
Iron ore prices went fell on Thursday May 27, due to limited demand in the seaborne market and at Chinese ports.Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $189.73 per tonne, down $3.14 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $190.90 per tonne, down $3.59 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $162.38 per tonne, down $2.64 per tonne65% Fe Brazil-origin fines, cf...Read More
Turkish steel producers again stepped away from the deep-sea scrap market after a downturn in steel billet and finished steel prices, triggered by falling prices in China, market participants told Fastmarkets on Thursday May 27.Mills had only just returned to the market on Wednesday, when a Turkish steelmaker booked f 44,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (95:5) from the United States at $515 per tonne cfr.Tha...Read More
Energy majors Royal Dutch Shell, Exxon Mobil and Chevron received landmark rebukes - in court or from investors - on Wednesday May 26 in attempts to force the companies into reducing carbon emissions.In a Dutch court, Shell was ordered to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 45% from 2019 levels, and to do so by 2030 - doubling its current pace.Activist shareholders Engine No1 will hold two seats on...Read More
London Metal Exchange prices rose on the morning of Thursday May 27, with copper and zinc climbing above their recently set psychological levels following year-to-date highs and nickel continuing its stride forward following a 1.5% rise on Wednesday.The LME three-month copper price was $10,038 per tonne at 9am London time, a 0.6% rise from Wednesday's close of $9,979 per tonne. The copper price ha...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange and Shanghai Futures Exchange were mixed during the morning of Thursday May 27, as were broader markets - are these pauses, or early signs of a stall?More US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) members seem to be getting off the fence about talking about tapering Chinese yuan continues to strengthen, is China using the yuan to reduce inflationary pr...Read More
Prices for steel billet imported into Egypt fell in the week to Thursday May 27, largely due to a lack of demand, sources told Fastmarkets.Global billet prices have been decreasing recently and there was hardly any demand for imports into Egypt, they added.Fastmarkets' daily steel billet index, export, fob Black Sea, was $659 per tonne on May 27, down from $691 per tonne on May 20.Demand for rebar...Read More
Experts from the battery value chain shared their understanding and insights into lithium price evolution and the new lithium futures contract during a Fastmarkets' webinar on Tuesday May 25.CME Group in the United States launched a cash-settled lithium futures contract on May 3. The contract is settled against Fastmarkets' assessment of the lithium hydroxide monohydrate, 56.5% LiOH.H2O min, batte...Read More
Seaborne premium hard coking coal prices climbed up in both the cfr and fob markets on Thursday May 27, with the supply of north American premium hard coking coal to China still limited and more buying activity in the fob market, source told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $152.76 per tonne, up $12.16 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $262.29 per t...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday May 27 that are worth another look.Energy majors Royal Dutch Shell, Exxon Mobil and Chevron received landmark rebukes - in court or from investors - on Wednesday May 26 in attempts to force the companies into...Read More
Russia has decided to increase the duty imposed on steel scrap exports to ?,?70 ($85.57) per tonne in a bid to keep enough material within the domestic market against a background of rising global prices, the country's ministry of economic development said on Wednesday May 26."The percentage [at which the duty is applied] is being kept at 5% of the customs value," the ministry said. "And in order...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Europe were broadly flat day on day, reflecting a lack of trading activity in the spot market while supply is tight, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday May 27.Fastmarkets calculated its steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe at ?,?1,138.33 ($1,391.57) per tonne on May 27, down by ?,?2.67 per tonne from ?,?1,141 per tonne on May 26. The i...Read More
Turkish rebar and wire rod export prices made a downward correction in the week to Thursday May 27, having risen steadily since the end of April, market participants told Fastmarkets this week.Turkish steelmakers lowered their rebar export offers to $750-780 per tonne fob on an actual-weight basis, down from last week's $780-790 per tonne. The downward movement followed a downturn in Asian steel p...Read More