Some Chinese steelmakers are refusing to deliver January-contracted steel cargoes bound for Shanghai Futures Exchange warehouses to stem falling prices.Some steel mills in northern China said on Wednesday November 10 they will not deliver cargoes for January futures positions because their prices are too low compared with spot physical prices.The most-traded January rebar futures contract closed a...Read More
Chinese exporters of ammonium paratungstate (APT) tried to hold their offers firm this past week, despite the overall export market being inactive and domestic prices in China falling, according to sources.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for tungsten APT 88.5% WO3 min, fob main ports China was $313-319 per metric tonne unit (mtu) on Wednesday November 10, widening downward by $2 per mtu from...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were largely up at the 5pm close of trading on Thursday November 11, after a strong morning performance and reassuring news that emerged from the Chinese property sector."Chinese stock markets gained, on growing confidence that the authorities would ease the crackdown on the property sector and support developers," Anna Stablum, LME desk analyst at M...Read More
The United States' imports of steelmaking raw materials fell by 7.36% month on month in September, spurred by a reduction in inflows of pig iron and a drop in ferrous scrap intake from Canada, according to the latest data from the US Census Bureau.Raw material imports totaled 931,030 tonnes in September, compared with 1 million tonnes in August and nearly 1.30 million tonnes in July.Overall ferrou...Read More
Steel billet prices in Turkey have weakened over the past week amid limited demand in the country, market participants told Fastmarkets on Thursday November 11.Steelmakers in the country have been struggling with weak finished long steel sales in the export outlets. Therefore, demand for billet has remained soft.Suppliers in the Commonwealth of Independent States have lowered their billet offers t...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday November 11 that are worth another look.The capacity expansion at ArcelorMittal Brasil's Monlevade unit will serve either the domestic or export markets with high-quality special steel products, chief executive officer Jefferson De Paula told Fastmarkets on November 11....Read More
Automotive and industrial supplier Schaeffler has signed an off-take agreement with Sweden's H2 Green Steel (H2GS) to purchase 100,000 tonnes of its near-zero CO2- free steel on an annual basis from 2025, the company announced earlier in the week.The steel will be produced via direct reduction with hydrogen from renewable energy, replacing coking coal and reducing emissions by 95% in comparison wi...Read More
China's output and sales of automobiles continued their year-on-year decline in October due to the continuing semiconductor chip shortage, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) said in its monthly report published on Wednesday November 10.Automobile output and sales in the country dropped by 8.8% and 9.4% year on year respectively, both to 2.33 million units in October, CAAM dat...Read More
Seaborne coking coal cfr prices continued to drop on Thursday with new offers at lower prices emerging, while there was a trade in the fob market after a quiet week.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $522.01 per tonne, down $8.14 per tonneHard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $464.62 per tonne, down $10.10 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $400.49 per tonne, down $0.99...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday November 11 that are worth another look.The capacity expansion at ArcelorMittal Brasil's Monlevade unit will serve either the domestic or export markets with high-quality special steel products, chief executive officer Jefferson De Paula told Fastmarkets on November 11....Read More
Production output for mining companies across base metals is likely to remain low despite significant additional capacity because miners face challenges from climate disruptions, ageing mines and Covid-19-related delays, Australian consultancy and research firm Cape Noir said on Thursday November 11."A lot of assets are showing declines in production and rolling delays to maintenance. Assets have...Read More
Johnson Matthey (JM) is pursuing the sale of all or parts of its battery materials division following a detailed review.This reflects the high capital intensity of those operations in the face of competition from more established large-scale, low-cost producers, the UK-based specialty chemical and sustainable technologies company said in a press release on Thursday November 11.Growth in demand for...Read More
China's output and sales of automobiles continued their year-on-year decline in October due to the continuing semiconductor chip shortage, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) said in its monthly report published on Wednesday November 10.Automobile output and sales in the country dropped by 8.8% and 9.4% year on year respectively, both to 2.33 million units in October, CAAM dat...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday November 11 that are worth another look.The capacity expansion at ArcelorMittal Brasil's Monlevade unit will serve either the domestic or export markets with high-quality special steel products, chief executive officer Jefferson De Paula told Fastmarkets on November 11....Read More
Nickel, a key raw material in lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles (EVs), has gradually grown its market share amid a global shift away from fossil fuels.But with lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries making a comeback in the EV market in China, a shadow is being cast on the growth potential for nickel consumption in 2022.The stainless steel market, which accounts for approximately 90%...Read More
Spot prices for hot-rolled coil in China posted a strong rally on Thursday November 11, as expectations of an easing in property financing and mill moves to underpin steel prices temporarily stemmed the sharp downturn in the futures market.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 4,850-4,900 yuan ($758-765) per tonne, up by 190-200 yuan per tonneThe most-traded HRC contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchan...Read More
Nickel, a key raw material in lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles (EVs), has gradually grown its market share amid a global shift away from fossil fuels.But with lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries making a comeback in the EV market in China, a shadow is being cast on the growth potential for nickel consumption in 2022.The stainless steel market, which accounts for approximately 90%...Read More
ArcelorMittal will invest $1 billion to expand its iron ore and long steel capacities in Latin America between the second halves of 2023 and 2024, the steelmaker said.In Brazil, the Luxembourg-headquartered company will invest $500 million in increasing upstream capacity of its long steel unit in Jo??o Monlevade, in the southeastern Minas Gerais state, while an expansion of its Serra Azul iro...Read More
Steel billet prices to Egypt declined in the week to Thursday November 11, with demand from the private sector remaining weak, while government-funded projects continued, sources told Fastmarkets.Local rebar prices in Egypt have been unchanged since October 28 at E ?14,900-15,350 ($946-975) per tonne ex-works, including 14% VAT. ...Read More
Steel billet prices to Egypt declined in the week to Thursday November 11, with demand from the private sector remaining weak, while government-funded projects continued, sources told Fastmarkets.Local rebar prices in Egypt have been unchanged since October 28 at E ?14,900-15,350 ($946-975) per tonne ex-works, including 14% VAT. ...Read More