The process at the heart of proposals to overhaul the London Metal Exchange's market structure is problematic and suggests the exchange is not putting its users first, the president of the International Wrought Copper Council (IWCC) said. In an interview with Fastmarkets, Mark Loveitt said that it was not clear to the IWCC and its members why the exchange was revisiting plans to change its margin...Read More
Steelmakers in Turkey stepped back from the deep-sea scrap market after the unexpected sacking of the head of the country's central bank sent the Turkish currency into freefall, sources told Fastmarkets on Monday March 22.The Turkish steel mills have been away from the deep-sea scrap markets since March 12, when two cargoes from the Baltic Sea were booked at $435-437 per tonne cfr on HMS 1&2 (80:2...Read More
The proposals included in the London Metal Exchange's discussion paper would not serve the needs of the physical market and could have a negative impact on copper and copper alloy semis-fabricators, the International Wrought Copper Council (IWCC) said.Mark Loveitt, IWCC president and director, said the association is not opposed to change but believed the proposals would not achieve the LME's stat...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday March 22 that are worth another look.Crude steel output in Germany dropped by 10.4% year on year in February 2021 after four consecutive months of recovery, German steel federation WV Stahl said on March 22.The process at...Read More
Brazil-headquartered Nexa Resources has suspended operations at its Extremo Norte underground mine in the Vazante unit, due to the identification of ground displacements on the site, the base metals producer said on Friday March 19.The downtime is not expected to significantly affect production in the first quarter, however, Nexa said. Throughput of the second mine in the division, also called Vaz...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mixed on Monday March 22, while those on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were up across the board. United States 10-year treasuries yields have eased to 1.67%, from recent highs of 1.75%Base metals LME three-month base metals prices were mixed, with copper, aluminium and lead down by an average of 0.5%, while the rest of the metals were up by an a...Read More
Australia-based graphite miner Syrah Resources has completed the installation of a furnace at its active anode material (AAM) project in US city of Vidalia, Louisiana, a significant milestone on its path to becoming a vertically integrated producer of natural graphite AAM outside of China, the company announced on Monday March 22.Syrah Resources produced and coated purified spherical graphite, whi...Read More
The downtrend in China's cobalt sulfate market accelerated in the week to Friday March 19 on weak buying interest and a widening gap between offers for material produced from cobalt hydroxide and that produced from scrap.Fastmarkets' price assessment for cobalt sulfate 20.5% Co basis, exw China fell to 81,000-83,000 yuan ($12,434-12,741) per tonne on Friday March 19, down by 4,000 yuan per tonne (...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday March 22 that are worth another look.Crude steel output in Germany dropped by 10.4% year on year in February 2021 after four consecutive months of recovery, German steel federation WV Stahl said on March 22.The process at...Read More
Crude steel output in Germany dropped by 10.4% year on year in February 2021 after four consecutive months of recovery, German steel federation WV Stahl said on Monday March 22.German crude steel production totaled more than 3.09 million tonnes in February, down from 3.46 million tonnes in the corresponding period of 2020."The cautious upward trend of the past few months has ended. The recove...Read More
Domestic prices for steel hot-rolled coil substantially increased across Europe over the week to Friday March 19, driven by a material shortage and strong demand.At the end of last week, ArcelorMittal increased its offer prices further, up by ?,?50 per tonne in Northern Europe to ?,?850 ($1,012) per tonne ex-works, and up by about ?,?30-40 per tonne to ?,?820 per tonne ex-works in Italy.Fastmarket...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday March 22 that are worth another look.Crude steel output in Germany dropped by 10.4% year on year in February 2021 after four consecutive months of recovery, German steel federation WV Stahl said on March 22.The process at...Read More
Special bar quality (SBQ) steel prices in the United States rose in March for both hot-rolled and cold-finished product due to rapid increases in demand and higher raw material costs.Fastmarkets' assessment for hot-rolled special bar quality 1-inch round 1000 series (carbon), fob mill US was at $51 per hundredweight ($1,020 per short ton) on Friday March 19, up by 15.91% from $44 per cwt on F...Read More
Prices for cold-heading quality (CHQ) and high-carbon wire rod in the United States moved higher this month after remaining flat in February, while mills that are struggling to meet demand have extended lead times. Fastmarkets' monthly assessment for steel wire rod (high carbon), fob mill US was at $50 per hundredweight ($1,000 per short ton) on Friday March 19, up by $2.25 per cwt (4.71%) from&nb...Read More
Steelmakers in Turkey stepped back from the deep-sea scrap market after the unexpected sacking of the head of the country's central bank sent the Turkish currency into freefall, sources told Fastmarkets on Monday March 22.The Turkish steel mills have been away from the deep-sea scrap markets since March 12, when two cargoes from the Baltic Sea were booked at $435-437 per tonne cfr on HMS 1&2 (80:2...Read More
Turkish domestic scrap prices have continued to soften over the past week due to falling values for imported scrap, while several mills have stopped buying material due to the plunge in the value of the country's lira, market sources said on Monday March 22.The country's deep-sea scrap import prices have made a downward correction in recent weeks, with mills staying away from scrap purchases due t...Read More
Steel slab export offer prices from Brazil inched up in the week ended on Friday March 19, on continuing strong demand in the United States, pushed by strong finished steel prices.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel slab, export, fob main port Brazil, was $780-810 per tonne fob on March 12, widening upward by $10 from $780-800 per tonne fob previously.Offers to the US were reported as h...Read More
Inner Mongolia, China's ferro-chrome production heartland, has imposed restrictions on its metallurgical sector in a move that has fueled the high-carbon ferro-chrome markets in China and Europe, and although this may ease off, the gains were unlikely to be lost while alloy ramp-ups continue, sources have told Fastmarkets.The decision to restrict energy consumption in Inner Mongolia since December...Read More
The Indian export price for silico-manganese jumped by nearly 9% on Friday March 19 to the highest since Fastmarkets started to assess the market in June 2014. Fastmarkets assessed the silico-manganese, 65% Mn min, min 16% Si, fob India price at $1,250-1,280 per tonne on Friday, up by $100 per tonne, or 8.58%, week on week. The previous high of $1,220-1,260 per tonne was achieved in February...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday March 22 that are worth another look.Crude steel output in Germany dropped by 10.4% year on year in February 2021 after four consecutive months of recovery, German steel federation WV Stahl said on March 22.The process at...Read More