Key data from Fastmarkets' pricing session in China on Wednesday May 13. Key drivers Domestic price stabilizes amid low liquidity due to limited buying interest, halting the uptrend seen in the preceding two weeks. Many consumers showed little interest in purchasing antimony this week after noticing demand for antimony trioxide...Read More
Newmont is to begin ramping up operations at its Pe??asquito lead-zinc-silver mine in Mexico on Monday May 18 following the government's designation of mining as an essential activity. The start-up of Pe??asquito is expected to take roughly two weeks to reach stable production levels, the Colorado, United States-based producer said. "As we begin to ramp up, Newmont will provide an update on the co...Read More
A summary of Tubacex, a Spanish manufacturer of seamless stainless steel tube, for the first quarter of 2020. In brief Tubacex attributes weaker quarterly results to the Covid-19 pandemic. The company's plants in Spain, Italy and India have been affected by shutdown measures imposed by the respective local governments. At the rest of Tuvacex's plants, output was hampered by the n...Read More
China's leading stainless steel mills have raised their ferro-chrome tender prices for May deliveries, with one offering an additional payment for extra material delivered, incentivizing some smelters to increase their deliveries. But not all suppliers are enticed by the price hike because of a strong spot market and expectations of further price gains in the near term, Fastmarkets has learned. Ta...Read More
Hopes that the global economic engine fires up on the first attempt may be asking a lot given second waves of Covid-19 infections emerging, and the fact global leaders are not pulling together is not helping underlying sentiment this morning, Friday May 15, with US President Donald Trump at loggerheads with China. On the economic front, data out of China supports our view that the supply side of t...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were lower this morning. S&P 500 futures were down 34 points in pre-opening trade. Index futures moved lower following release of economic news at 8:30 AM EDT. Consensus for April Retail Sales was a drop of 12.0% versus a decline of 8.4% in March. Actual was a drop of 16.4% Excluding auto sales, consensus for April Retail Sales was a drop of 8.6% versus a declin...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday May 13 that are worth another look.China's Sichuan province is to implement an inspection regime to ensure steelmakers comply with the nationwide policy requiring the increased use of alloys to improve the quality of any rebar produced in the region.Glencore, Anglo American and Vale have been excluded from Norway's oil fund while...Read More
The three-month lead price on the London Metal Exchange was the underperformer at the close of trading on Wednesday May 13, slipping below nearby support levels against broad risk-off sentiment, while zinc futures similarly struggled over the afternoon.Lead's underlying price on the LME closed at $1,599.50 per tonne on Wednesday afternoon, falling from an intraday high of $1,632 per tonne, while t...Read More
Glencore, Anglo American and Vale have been excluded from Norway's oil fund while BHP has been placed on an observation list as the $1.1 trillion fund tightens up its environmental, social and governance (ESG) requirements. Glencore and Anglo American have been removed due to the fund's product-based coal criteria, which were made stricter last year, while Vale has been barred due to environmental...Read More
The sale of Freeport-McMoRan is not currently on the cards, particularly given the backdrop of its weaker share price, according to the chief executive officer of the US copper and gold producer. The mining company has been linked in recent months to a potential deal with Canada-based Barrick Gold, whose CEO Mark Bristow recently said he expects mergers and acquisitions activity in metals and mini...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday May 13 that are worth another look.China's Sichuan province is to implement an inspection regime to ensure steelmakers comply with the nationwide policy requiring the increased use of alloys to improve the quality of any rebar produced in the region.Glencore, Anglo American and Vale have been excluded from Norway's oil fund while...Read More
An overview of the minor metals markets and the reasons for their latest price moves.Read More
Key data from the Wednesday May 13 pricing session in Singapore.Key drivers Japanese buyers are relying heavily on China exports with the United States, Europe and other suppliers short of tonnages on offer. Chinese suppliers want to hold onto their cargoes due to an increase in domestic demand, with...Read More
Turkish steel producers continued to book deep-sea scrap cargoes for June shipment on Wednesday May 13, but prices started to show signs of a downturn due to the weak rebar market, sources told Fastmarkets. A steel mill in the Marmara region booked a US cargo, comprising 12,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $252 per tonne and 18,000-20,000 tonnes of shredded at $257 per tonne cfr.But another s...Read More
Japanese export steel scrap prices have jumped in the week to Wednesday May 13 following an active week of trading, market sources told Fastmarkets.Prices in the Japan market were buoyed firstly by a rise in the Kanto tender sales early on Tuesday and then again by much higher deals closed into South Korea later in the day.South Korean electric arc furnace (EAF) mills are seeing greater long steel...Read More
Uncertainty about how the lifting of lockdowns will pan out, with some clusters of Covid-19 infections being seen in countries where lockdowns have been lifted, is unsettling markets this morning, Wednesday May 13. As such, base metals prices along with equity markets have started to pull-back, or at least their rebounds are on hold.Business loans for long-term investments drop by 15% in Europe in...Read More
The sale of Freeport-McMoRan is not currently on the cards, particularly given the backdrop of its weaker share price, according to the chief executive officer of the US copper and gold producer. The mining company has been linked in recent months to a potential deal with Canada-based Barrick Gold, whose CEO Mark Bristow recently said he expects mergers and acquisitions activity in metals and mini...Read More
Key data from the pricing session in London on Wednesday May 13. Key drivers Market sources are indicating a slight uptick in inquiries for summer or fourth-quarter delivery, although the spot market remains relatively thinly traded. Weak demand is keeping...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday May 13 that are worth another look.China's Sichuan province is to implement an inspection regime to ensure steelmakers comply with the nationwide policy requiring the increased use of alloys to improve the quality of any rebar produced in the region.Glencore, Anglo American and Vale have been excluded from Norway's oil fund while...Read More
Europe's domestic prices for heavy steel plate have dropped again over the past week due to poor demand, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday May 13.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel domestic plate, 8-40mm, exw northern Europe was ?,?470-490 ($509-531) per tonne on May 13, widening downward by ?,?10 per tonne from ?,?480-490 per tonne on May 6.The assessment is based on off...Read More