The downward pressure on flat-rolled steel import prices in South America persisted in the week ended Friday November 5, with buyers still cautious of ordering January-shipment cargoes while gauging future demand and overall pricing trends.More market participants expressed their fears during the week regarding an export duty being imposed on steel products from China from January 2022. They said...Read More
An overview of the energy transition raw materials markets and their price moves in the week to Friday November 5.Susan Zou, Yingchi Yang and...Read More
Spot prices for hot-rolled coil in China edged lower on Friday November 5, while futures prices set a new nine-month low.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 4,960-5,000 yuan ($775-781) per tonne, widening downward by 20 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tangshan) weekly assessment: 5,030-5,090 yuan per tonne, down by 260-270 yuan per tonne Spot HRC prices in eastern China ended the week down by 340-370...Read More
An overview of the energy transition raw materials markets and their price moves in the week to Friday November 5.Susan Zou, Yingchi Yang and...Read More
Low-carbon aluminium differentials in Europe have widened after this week's United Nations environmental conference, COP26, put sustainability in the spotlight.Fastmarkets assessed the aluminium low-carbon differential P1020A, Europe, at $0-10 per tonne, up from $0-7 per tonne in the previous assessment on October 1."We would be looking for $10 per tonne minimum right now, and I think that is tota...Read More
Fastmarkets' copper concentrate treatment charge/refining charge (TC/RC) indices were largely stable this past week. More tonnages are available on tender for shipment next year, while smelters' buying has been relatively limited ahead of annual negotiations. For clean concentrate, a 90,000-tonne Cozamin tender for 2022 production was due to be awarded later on Friday November 5, with winning ter...Read More
Ferrous scrap prices in the global markets were unstable in the week ended Friday November 5 because deep-sea import prices in Turkey, the biggest scrap importer, fell earlier. But they rebounded toward the end of the week, while suppliers in the United States were able to resist the decline because of strong domestic demand. Turkish import prices rebounded late in the week Strong domestic demand...Read More
An overview of the specialty steel raw materials markets in Europe and their latest price moves.Janie Davies, Dalila Ouerghi,...Read More
Fastmarkets opened a consultation on October 1, inviting feedback on its IOSCO-audited non-ferrous materials methodologies in line with our annual methodology review process.The consultation, which closed on October 31, sought to ensure that the specifications and methodology for our audited alumina, aluminium, cobalt, copper, lithium and manganese ore prices continue to reflect the physical marke...Read More
Steel prices in the United States are poised to continue decreasing at a slow pace in the coming months, Luxembourg-based steelmaker Ternium said on Wednesday November 3.Supply and demand fundamentals have started to normalize in the country, but remain far from balance, according to Ternium chief executive officer M??ximo Vedoya.Among the drivers for lower prices, the CEO cited capacity usage in...Read More
Turkish steel mills have continued their deep-sea scrap imports with recovering prices on Thursday November 4, market participants told Fastmarkets.A steel mill in the Marmara region booked a US cargo comprising 20,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $500 per tonne, 7,000 tonnes of shredded and 3,000 tonnes of bonus at $520 per tonne cfr. Another steel mill in the same region booked a cargo from the...Read More
Backwardations in the forward curves of most metals on the London Metal Exchange have constrained warrant trading for the past few weeks.Copper warrants, for example, have been "impossible" to trade since steep backwardations emerged in copper's forward curve in mid-October, traders widely agreed.Its cash/three-month spread was recently at a $190 per tonne backwardation on Thursday November 4, hav...Read More
Sentiment was buoyed among most market participants at the annual Nickel & Cobalt conference held by Chinese information provider Antaike on November 1-3 in Ningbo, China, but the strong resurgence of lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries has created uncertainty about consumption of the two metals.Fastmarkets summarizes below four key takeaways from the sidelines of the conference.LFP outperforms...Read More
The price of manganese flake has reached all-time highs in China and Europe, with most producers remaining bullish on the medium-and long-term outlook due to supply tightness. However, risk aversion continues in Europe; some cheaper offers are casting doubts about the immediate price direction of the metal, Fastmarkets heard.The manganese flake price has been on the rise in China since May, peakin...Read More
Major companies in logistics and heavy industry have come together as part of an initiative launched by the World Economic Forum at the the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference - COP26 - in Glasgow to create a critical mass of demand for low carbon technologies aimed at decarbonising heavily polluting sectors.The First Movers Coalition, announced on November 4, is a partnership between th...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were down across the board at the 5pm close on Thursday November 4, with strength in the United States Dollar supporting price weakness across the complex.The US Dollar Index was most recently at $94.39 after hitting an intraday high of $94.47, the highest level since October 13, with base metals trading downward as a result. The three-month alu...Read More
The agreement reached between the United States and the European Union regarding the replacement of Section 232 tariffs will support domestic prices for flat steel in Europe but the impact is likely to be limited, sources told Fastmarkets.On October 30, the US and the EU agreed to replace Section 232 steel and aluminium tariffs against the bloc's 27 countries with tariff-rate quotas.The decision i...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday November 4 that are worth another look.The agreement reached between the United States and the European Union regarding the replacement of Section 232 tariffs will support domestic prices for flat steel in Europe but...Read More
Mexican steel producer Deacero has opened an office in Washington to be closer to trade decisions affecting its business. It is a first for a Mexican company, according to a Thursday November 4 statement."This is where decisions are made that affect our company, its workers, and its customers - not only in the US, but also in Mexico, and in other international markets where we do...Read More
The Cobalt alloy grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lbtrade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets publishes trades logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparencyinto the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies.Fastmarkets assessed...Read More