Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Tuesday March 9 that are worth another look.Canada's coking coal exports to China increased by a fifth in 2020 amid a "verbal ban" imposed by Chinese authorities on cargoes from Australia late last year.Trafigura's warehousing and...Read More
Chinese battery materials producer Xiamen Tungsten will temporarily suspend its lithium cobalt oxide (LCO) operations in late April, a source from the company told Fastmarkets on March 9.The suspension at Xiamen Tungsten's LCO battery material operation in Sanming City, Fujian province, will last over 10 days starting from late April...Read More
Prime scrap grades in Mexico's main ferrous scrap markets registered gains in the week ended Friday March 5, while the secondary grades were stable, with buyers' and sellers' price pressure increasing again.Scrap sellers were heard raising busheling prices in both markets due to low availability of the material, following recent price cuts heard in late February. Most sellers a...Read More
Turkish steel producers continued to book deep-sea scrap cargoes for April shipment, with prices making a downward correction amid increased supplies, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday March 9.A steel mill in the Izmir region booked a US cargo, comprising 18,000 tonnes of shredded and 12,000 tonnes of bonus at an average price of $467 per tonne on Saturday March 6.The same mill, then, booked ano...Read More
Base metals prices on both the London Metal Exchange and the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mixed this morning, Tuesday March 9, with prices generally consolidating after recent weakness, while there are cross currents in the form of bond yields, stimulus and inflation expectations affecting sentiment. Brent crude oil prices dip back below $70 per barrel after Monday's move above $71 per barrelInf...Read More
Chinese lithium producer Ganfeng Lithium and wholly owned subsidiary Qinghai Liangcheng Mining will hold 49% of the Minmetals Salt Lake project following conclusion of a 1.47-billion-yuan ($226.07-million) deal to buy Yili Hongda, the company said on Monday March 8.Ganfeng and Qinghai Liangcheng Mining will acquire 100% of the shares in Yili Hongda currently held by Citic Securities, Tibet Hongda...Read More
More than a year after the Covid-19 pandemic began, investors' appetite in the battery raw materials sector has increased, moving away from precious metals such as gold, but it has yet to be seen if that interest will result in more supply, participants in a Fastmarkets webinar heard on Thursday March 4."What is an interesting dynamic is that, when Covid-19 came in, everyone looked to gold when cu...Read More
Chinese battery materials producer Xiamen Tungsten will temporarily suspend its lithium cobalt oxide (LCO) operations in late April, a source from the company told Fastmarkets on March 9.The suspension at Xiamen Tungsten's LCO battery material operation in Sanming City, Fujian province, will last over 10 days starting from late April...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.United StatesDomestic prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) in the United States averaged $1,316 per tonne in February 2021, and Fastmarkets' research team expects prices to maintain that momentum through March and April.Flat steel product prices in the country continue to be supported by exceedingly tight supply, reflecting prod...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) in Northern Europe increased further day on day on Tuesday March 9, supported by reduced availability, sources have told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets calculated its daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe, at ?,?756.25 ($898.28) per tonne on Tuesday, up by ?,?2.50 per tonne from ?,?753.75 per tonne on March 8.The index was also up by ?,...Read More
Import prices for steel rebar and billet in the United Arab Emirates have increased this week but local rebar prices fell because producers gave discounts, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday March 9.The country's steel producers were offering rebar at 2,530-2,545 dirhams ($689-693) per tonne ex-works.Local demand for rebar was limited during the week, because of a lack of new projects. Rebar deal...Read More
Geert Van Poelvoorde has been named chief executive officer of ArcelorMittal Europe, the company announced on Tuesday March 9.The move follows the appointment last month of Aditya Mittal as CEO of ArcelorMittal, having previously held the position at ArcelorMittal Europe.Van Poelvoorde was previously CEO of...Read More
Domestic steel rebar prices in Russia's Central Federal District around Moscow moved up in the week to Tuesday March 9, after mills increased their offers in response to improving demand, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, cpt Moscow, Russia was 51,000-52,000 roubles ($685-698) per tonne, including 20% value-added tax, on March 9...Read More
Prime scrap grades in Mexico's main ferrous scrap markets registered gains in the week ended Friday March 5, while the secondary grades were stable, with buyers' and sellers' price pressure increasing again.Scrap sellers were heard raising busheling prices in both markets due to low availability of the material, following recent price cuts heard in late February. Most sellers a...Read More
Turkish steel producers continued to book deep-sea scrap cargoes for April shipment, with prices making a downward correction amid increased supplies, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday March 9.A steel mill in the Izmir region booked a US cargo, comprising 18,000 tonnes of shredded and 12,000 tonnes of bonus at an average price of $467 per tonne on Saturday March 6.The same mill, then, booked ano...Read More
Import prices for steel rebar and billet in the United Arab Emirates have increased this week but local rebar prices fell because producers gave discounts, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday March 9.The country's steel producers were offering rebar at 2,530-2,545 dirhams ($689-693) per tonne ex-works.Local demand for rebar was limited during the week, because of a lack of new projects. Rebar deal...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices dropped on Tuesday March 9 due to trading houses' demand for destocking and the futures' price loss, sources said.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 4,700-4,720 yuan ($721-724) per tonne, down by 40 yuan per tonneSales volume did not climb up too much in early March, compared to late February, due to the frequent price changes and the bad weather so trading houses' reb...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday March 8 that are worth another look.The supply shortage in the European steel market, which has been driving up domestic prices since late 2020, will persist until the end of this year at the very least, market sources told Fastmarkets.With...Read More
The supply shortage in the European steel market, which has been driving up domestic prices since late 2020, will persist until the end of this year at the very least, market sources told Fastmarkets.Finished steel distributors have said they have been struggling to get the necessary volumes of finished steel from either domestic or overseas suppliers, adding that they do not expect the situation...Read More
China's iron ore imports in January and February 2021 increased by 2.8% from 2020, data released on Monday March 8 from the General Administration of Customs of China shows.In the first two months of 2021, China's imports of iron ore totalled 181.51 million tonnes, up by 2.8% year on year from 176.6 million tonnes in 2020, customs data showed.The increase in iron ore imports...Read More