The Port of Los Angeles plans to operate around the clock seven days a week to address a growing backlog of shipments waiting in cargo containers anchored offshore to be unloaded at the port.The port announced the move on Wednesday October 13, joining a similar effort that began at the nearby Port of Long Beach in September.The port is figuring out the details of how it will work with supply chain...Read More
European distributors of flat steel products reported a minor year-on-year increase in shipment volumes for August 2021, regional steel industry association Eurometal said on October 13.Growth in shipment volumes slowed to 0.5% in August from a rise of 3.4% in July and of 24.3% in June.In the first eight months of 2021, flat steel shipments in the European Union and the United Kingdom increased by...Read More
Diversified miner South32 is to buy a 45% interest in the Sierra Gorda copper mine in Chile from Sumitomo Metal Mining, the Australian company said on Thursday October 14.The acquisition is consistent with its strategy to reshape South32's portfolio for a low-carbon future, it said, producing materials critical for global decarbonization and the energy transition.Sierra Gorda, located in the Antof...Read More
Demand for imported steel scrap in South Korea has continued to rise despite the closure of an electric-arc furnace (EAF) in the country and a sharp jump in prices from key supplier markets, sources said on Thursday October 14.An EAF owned by a medium-sized South Korean steelmaker has been closed due to an accident at the plant, Fastmarkets first heard on October 5. Sources told Fastmarkets that...Read More
The European Commission (EC) has extended anti-dumping duties on imports of wire rod from China until 2026, the Official Journal of the European Union said on October 13.The EC concluded that dumping would likely recur if the current measures were allowed to lapse. This followed an expiry review lodged by the European steel association, Eurofer, in July 2020 on behalf of...Read More
Rio Tinto will test the use of biomass in place of coking coal in the steelmaking process in a small-scale pilot plant, in an attempt to cut the industry's carbon emissions through the use of innovative technologies, it announced on Thursday October 14.Over the past decade, the company has developed a laboratory-proven process that combines the use of raw, sustainable biomass with microwave techno...Read More
Mexican integrated steelmaker Altos Hornos de M?(C)xico (Ahmsa) has announced measures intended to reduce its consumption of natural gas after an increase in global prices.The company did not say whether the measure would affect its steel production, but it planned to gradually replace natural gas with gas generated in the steelmaking process.Ahmsa is a major steel producer and ferrous scrap consu...Read More
Bullish sentiment on Thursday October 14, driven by Nyrstar's announcement of production cuts, has pushed the zinc price on the Shanghai Futures Exchange to its highest level since 2019.The SHFE November zinc price surged to its daily upward limit (4%) and finally closed at 25,700 yuan ($3,994) per tonne on Thursday.The surge came after the major zinc producer Nyrstar announced that it would be cu...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Northern Europe and Italy remained fairly stable on Thursday October 14 due to limited trading activity, sources have told Fastmarkets.European mills have been trading reduced volumes of coil and mainly holding back from making big deals. Prices have been under downward pressure from weak automotive sector demand, high stock levels at distributors and substan...Read More
Offer prices for deep-sea cargoes in Bangladesh jumped in the week ended October 14 amid bullish sentiment from United States sellers and good scrap demand in competing Asian import nations, sources told Fastmarkets.Bangladeshi mills hit by strong offer pricesSouth Korean mill issues scrap import tenderTaiwanese containerized prices continue to increaseElectricity rationing sours sentiment in Chin...Read More
The Cobalt standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb trade 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 Cobalt...Read More
Imported billet prices into Egypt increased in the week to Thursday October 14, but appetite for imports was still weak because of the "Advance Cargo Information" system (ACI), sources told Fastmarkets.The ACI system has been in effect since October 1 for all imports to Egyptian seaports. ACI is a World Customs Organization protocol that provides real-time information on transactions and operation...Read More
An overview of the specialty steel raw materials markets in Europe and their latest price moves.Janie Davies, Alex Cooks...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices rose on Thursday October 14 amid active trading activity in the spot market and at Chinese ports because of a slight increase in buying interest, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $125.91 per tonne, up by $1.74 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $127.60 per tonne, up by $2.51 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premiu...Read More
Indian hot-rolled coil export prices have increased by about $15-25 per tonne in the week to Thursday October 14 because of strong domestic demand, Fastmarkets has heard.Mills this week have concluded HRC export bookings at prices in the range of $860-870 per tonne fob, mainly to destinations in the Middle East. This was about $15-25 per tonne higher compared with previous bookings in the range of...Read More
China domestic rebar prices increased on Thursday October 14 on good and steady demand over the previous two days.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 5,770-5,800 yuan ($896-900) per tonne, up by 40-50 per tonneEnd users kept stable procurement rates today after they raised demand on Wednesday, so rebar prices recovered some loss.And market participants heard that major...Read More
China's domestic demand for stainless steel has weakened in the past few week due to a widespread electricity shortage across the country, which weighed on prices in the week to Wednesday October 13.DomesticStainless steel cold-rolled coil 2mm grade 304 domestic (Wuxi): 21,000-21,200 ($3,260-3,291) per tonne, narrowed downward by 200 yuan per tonne from September 29. The power shortage has resulte...Read More
An overview of the consumer electronics markets and their latest price moves.Fola Malomo and Janie...Read More
Seaborne coking coal prices in the cfr China market increased on Thursday October 14 due to necessary restocking activities from Chinese steel mills; fob prices remained largely flat, market sources said.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $610.15 per tonne, up $1.30 per tonneHard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $562.53 per tonne, up $3.07 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, fob D...Read More
Pipe producer Vallourec and Brazilian tube, bar and stainless steel distributor Grupo A??otubo announced a joint venture to supply steel tubes and pipes to industrial clients.The new company, called Vallourec Tubos para Ind??stria (VTI) will comprise Vallourec's Brazilian unit of cold-drawn and shaped tubes and A??otubo's division of cold-drawn tubes and parts, and it will focus in supplying the a...Read More