A summary of Swedish state-owned iron-ore producer LKAB's financial results for the third quarter of 2021, ending September 30In brief LKAB continued to deliver historically high operating profits in July-September 2021 amid strong demand from steelmakers and high iron ore prices. Fastmarkets' iron ore index for 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao averaged at $163.39 per tonne in the third quarter of...Read More
Buy-side sentiment in key Asian steel scrap markets has been hurt by news that Chinese trading firms were offering Southeast Asian buyers steel billet which was already imported into China, together with recent falls in the scrap price in Turkey, sources said on Thursday October 28.?EUR?Easing bulk freight costs reduce Bangladesh deep-sea bulk scrap prices?EUR?China import demand muted after steel...Read More
Prices for pig iron originating from the Black Sea basin continued to grow in late October, supported by limited availability of the material.Most producers continued to stay away from the market to better assess the situation. Some of their facilities were on maintenance.A supplier from Eastern Ukraine was said to have increased offers for its material to $550-560 per tonne fob, following last we...Read More
Steel wire rod producers in Southern Europe have tried to increase offer prices this week, despite buyer resistance, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel wire rod (mesh quality), domestic, delivered southern Europe, remained at ?,?760-800 ($882-928) per tonne on Wednesday, October 27. ItalyIn Italy, wire rod was heard traded at ?,?760-770 per tonne delivered...Read More
Prices for imports of basic pig iron into China have inched upward over the past fortnight, after transactions for Brazilian cargoes completed on October 15, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday October 28.Following those deals, however, buying activity started to slow down because sellers were offering cargoes at higher prices due to tight supply, market participants said.Around 120,000 tonnes of...Read More
A healthy price arbitrage for Japanese hot-rolled coil producers to export into steel markets in the Americas has enabled these mills to keep raising their steel scrap buying prices in recent months, sources told Fastmarkets.Japanese HRC exports to the Americas totaled 1.36 million tonnes in January-August 2021 under HS codes 7208 and 722530, up by 37.6% year on year, according to statistics from...Read More
A summary of Swedish state-owned iron-ore producer LKAB's financial results for the third quarter of 2021, ending September 30In brief LKAB continued to deliver historically high operating profits in July-September 2021 amid strong demand from steelmakers and high iron ore prices. Fastmarkets' iron ore index for 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao averaged at $163.39 per tonne in the third quarter of...Read More
The price assessment for imported billet into Egypt decreased in the week to Thursday October 27, but local rebar prices widened upward on higher offers, sources told Fastmarkets.Local rebar producers increased their prices, effectiveOctober 20.Current offer prices for rebar range from E ?14,900 to15,350 ($946-975) per tonne ex-works including 14% VAT.Demand failed to improve in the country, howev...Read More
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sent a notice to Brazil-based miner Vale regarding a possible investigation surrounding the Brumadinho tailings dam disaster in 2019.The SEC staff made a preliminary determination to recommend the beginning of proceedings against Vale, alleging that the company's disclosures about dam safety management and the Brumadinho dam could have...Read More
The low-carbon ferro-chrome market in Europe leapt over the two weeks to Tuesday October 26 to a multi-year high due to extremely tight availability, with some sellers not offering on the spot market and consumers scrambling to find material.Fastmarkets' price assessment for ferro-chrome 0.10% C, average 65-70% Cr, delivered Europe was $3.43-3.75 per lb Cr on October 26, up by 38-50 cents (13.97%)...Read More
Turkish steel mills were quiet in the deep-sea scrap markets ahead of an upcoming Republic Day holiday on Thursday and Friday, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday October 27.The most recent cargo was recorded on Tuesday, when a steel mill in the Marmara region booked a cargo from the United States, consisting of 20,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (90:10) and 10,000 tonnes of shredded at an average price o...Read More
Consolidating its position in the battery materials supply chain amid fierce competition is the biggest challenge facing Greatpower Nickel & Cobalt Materials Co, company president Dongqiang Cao told Fastmarkets in an interview.Previously, attracting investment and improving the ability to provide finance had proved to be a bottleneck in the early stages of Greatpower's development, when it expande...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday October 27 that are worth another look.Long and flat-rolled steel producer Gerdau expects demand to continue to grow in 2022, after a rapid recovery of the local market this year from the lows of 2020 that were caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the...Read More
An overview of the consumer electronics markets and their latest price moves.Janie Davies in London;...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday October 27 that are worth another look.Long and flat-rolled steel producer Gerdau expects demand to continue to grow in 2022, after a rapid recovery of the local market this year from the lows of 2020 that were caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the...Read More
A summary of London Metal Exchange warrant premiums from across the globe for the week to Wednesday October 27.Please click...Read More
Consolidating its position in the battery materials supply chain amid fierce competition is the biggest challenge facing Greatpower Nickel & Cobalt Materials Co, company president Dongqiang Cao told Fastmarkets in an interview.Previously, attracting investment and improving the ability to provide finance had proved to be a bottleneck in the early stages of Greatpower's development, when it expande...Read More
Labor shortages across the global scrap industry pose the biggest threat to growth, according to a panel discussion at the Bureau of International Recycling (BIR) conference in Brussels on Tuesday October 26."We are having tremendous difficulties in hiring employees as we grow," George Adams, president of SA Recycling said as part of the discussion."There is going to be a massive shortage of scrap...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday October 27 that are worth another look.Long and flat-rolled steel producer Gerdau expects demand to continue to grow in 2022, after a rapid recovery of the local market this year from the lows of 2020 that were caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the...Read More
Aluminium producer Rusal's sales dipped by nearly 12% quarter-on-quarter to 915,000 tonnes in July-September 2021, according to its latest statement of operating results."Aluminium sales dynamics can largely be explained by an increase of goods in transit that are recognized as inventory, which was caused - among other factors - by transport capacity restrictions in supply chains globally," the co...Read More