Domestic prices for European heavy steel plate increased further in the week to Wednesday May 19, supported by good demand, sources told Fastmarkets.In addition, market sources said that lead times from domestic suppliers have been getting longer. German mills have already started trading October-December rolling plate, while Italian re-rollers have been offering July production."Demand is very go...Read More
The near-term outlook for ferro-silicon looks set to climb higher to a near record-high since Fastmarkets started assessing the price more than 24 years ago due to firm fundamentals, industry sources said.The European spot delivered price is gripped between tight supply and strong demand from steelmakers, while market focus is on expectations of renewed demand from consumers in early June for thei...Read More
Base metals prices were down by an average 3.2% on the London Metal Exchange at the close on Wednesday May 19, with fears of inflation continuing to creep into markets given new warnings from China and ahead of the release of the minutes from the Federal Open Markets Committee's latest meeting. Zinc's three-month price dropped by 3.9% to $2,939 per tonne at Wednesday's close, erasing the gains it...Read More
Iron ore prices fell sharply on Wednesday May 19, with low liquidity and sintering restrictions in Tangshan driving the downturn, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $216.16 per tonne, down $8.28 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $218.79 per tonne, down $8.98 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, ...Read More
First Quantum Minerals has entered into a binding agreement to sell a 30% equity interest in the Ravensthorpe nickel-cobalt operation in Western Australia to South Korean steelmaker Posco for $240 million in cash, the company said on May 19.The Vancouver, Canada-headquartered company will retain a 70% interest in Ravensthorpe and continue to be the operator.Posco and First Quantum have also agreed...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange dipped slightly across the board during morning trading on Wednesday May 19, following a week of volatility and a growing sense of unease. "Although the first trading week of May looked super bullish, I am not in the camp that base metals can hold on to the gains made. Instead, I envisage the monthly close to turn negative," Fastmarkets analyst Andy...Read More
China's approach to addressing aluminium overcapacity is a "night and day" change from five years' ago, according to the chief executive officer of Alcoa Corporation, Roy Harvey. Harvey said that China had previously operated on a model of building a coal-fired power plant with a smelter connected and essentially repeating the process continually, increasing aluminium production and creating overs...Read More
Domestic prices for European heavy steel plate increased further in the week to Wednesday May 19, supported by good demand, sources told Fastmarkets.In addition, market sources said that lead times from domestic suppliers have been getting longer. German mills have already started trading October-December rolling plate, while Italian re-rollers have been offering July production."Demand is very go...Read More
Manganese ore stocks at major Chinese ports have declined to a seven-month low amid continuously increased ore consumption among manganese alloy smelters in recent months. Fastmarkets assessed manganese ore inventories at the main Chinese ports of Tianjin and Qinzhou at 5.76 million-5.87 million tonnes on Monday May 17, down by 2.84% from 5.93 million-6.04 million tonnes the previous week and the...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday May 19 that are worth another look.ArcelorMittal has told some customers that it will be adding another ?,?50 ($73) per tonne to its coil product offer prices in Europe this week, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday May 19.Tax...Read More
The Alumar aluminium smelter in Brazil's Maranh??o state could be a future target for a restart, Alcoa Corp chief financial officer Bill Oplinger said. Alcoa operates around one-quarter of currently curtailed aluminium smelting operations in the Western world and is eying various dynamics when considering restarts, including local currency, local workforce and energy availability, he said. "When I...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday May 19 that are worth another look.ArcelorMittal has told some customers that it will be adding another ?,?50 ($73) per tonne to its coil product offer prices in Europe this week, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday May 19.Tax...Read More
Copper mining workers' unions in Chile support a new royalty proposal waiting to be voted in Senate and will prepare to take potential action in case it is rejected, Felipe Rom??n Briones, president of union federation FMC, told Fastmarkets on Tuesday May 18. According to the union leader, the introduction of a dynamic tax tied to copper prices is an "elegant" way to ensure private mining companie...Read More
An overview of the consumer electronics markets and their latest price moves.Ewa Manthey and Dalila Ouerghi...Read More
US domestic wire rod prices rose by an average $50 per short ton ($2.50 per hundredweight) in May due to tightening supply; at the same time, more buyers have turned to imports to acquire needed material, pushing import prices above domestic prices in some cases.Fastmarkets' monthly assessment for steel wire rod (low carbon) industrial quality, fob mill US was $49-51 per cwt ($980-1,020 per ton) T...Read More
Prices for steel hollow sections in Europe increased on Wednesday May 19, with some mills reportedly stepping out of the market, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel sections (medium), domestic, delivered Northern Europe was ?,?1,220-1,250 ($1,489-1,525) per tonne on May 19, up from ?,?1,190-1,220 per tonne on May 12.Market participants told Fastmarkets that severa...Read More
Steel wire rod producers in the north of Europe have largely sold outof June-rolling material and have yet to announce offers for July, while buyers expect prices to rise sharply due to persistent material shortage, limited and expensive imports, Fastmarkets heard on Wednesday May 19Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel wire rod (mesh-quality), domestic, delivered Northern Europe was...Read More
Turkish steel mills resumed booking deep-sea scrap late on Tuesday, resulting in higher prices, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday May 19 - the start of a public holiday in the country.The Turkish import market had been quiet since the Eid al-Fitr holiday that began on Wednesday May 12. Monday and Tuesday May 17 and 18 were normal working days, but no bookings were done until late on Tuesday. A...Read More
A strategy to cool down commodity price spikes was top of the agenda China's weekly State Cabinet meeting on Wednesday May 19. Chaired by China's second most powerful politician, Premier Li Keqiang, the cabinet meeting discussed control measures to rein in the "unreasonable price rally", including ensuring sufficient supplies of main commodities. The aim is to prevent the rising costs pa...Read More
Prices for steel scrap cargoes exported from Japan rose again during the week to Wednesday May 19 amid a healthy appetite from both South Korea and domestic buyers, market participants told Fastmarkets.The sharp decline in Chinese ferrous futures and spot market prices this week has done nothing to stop the rise of the Japan scrap market, with a further increase in offer prices recorded across all...Read More