Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday April 2 that are worth another look.Tata Steel has reduced output at its steel production sites in India and Europe due to decreased demand, and to obey the temporary regulations imposed to tackle the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic, the company said on Wednesday April 1.Norsk Hydro has decided to postpone adding 95,000 tonnes per...Read More
Key pricing data from the pricing session for Fastmarkets' alumina index, fob Australia, on Thursday April 2.Key drivers Fastmarkets' daily alumina index, fob Australia, was calculated at $237 per tonne on Thursday, down from $241.52 per tonne the day before and down by more than 11% from $268.33 per tonne on Thursday last week. The index is now at its lowest since September 26, 2016, when...Read More
Rio Tinto has declared force majeure on shipments of copper cathode from its Kennecott copper mine in the US state of Utah following a 5.7-magnitude earthquake near the site last month.All operations at the site were temporarily halted after the quake, with staff evacuated while an assessment was made. The mine, concentrator and tailings have since resumed operations, but the company has been work...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday April 2 that are worth another look.Tata Steel has reduced output at its steel production sites in India and Europe due to decreased demand, and to obey the temporary regulations imposed to tackle the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic, the company said on Wednesday April 1.Norsk Hydro has decided to postpone adding 95,000 tonnes per...Read More
Cobalt trade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets. Unless otherwise stated, all prices are per lb on an in-warehouse (in-whs) basis. Delivered prices are netted back. Fastmarkets prices Click here for Fastmarkets' price assessment for standard-grade cobalt, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb. Click here for Fastmarkets' price assessment for alloy-grade cobalt, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.A 6% decline in the daily average 62% Fe iron ore fines benchmark last week contributed to the lowest quarterly price rise for the first quarter in five years, in spite of clear evidence of supply-side constraints. Although there were clear demand-related obstacles to iron ore suppliers raking in more typical, seasonal price...Read More
Norsk Hydro has decided to postpone adding 95,000 tonnes per year to capacity at the Husnes aluminium plant in Norway in light of the rapidly deteriorating market conditions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. The ramp-up of Husnes was originally planned to begin in the first half of 2020, but has now been postponed to the third quarter at the earliest. This is also dependent on market developme...Read More
The Turkish steel producers have continued to stay away from the deep-sea scrap market, while suppliers were raising their offer prices because of tightening supplies, sources said on Thursday April 2.The most recent deep-sea deals had put prices at $206-207 per tonne cfr for HMS 1&2 (80:20) and mills' expectations since then have been around $200-205 per tonne for similar material.But suppliers w...Read More
Markets seem to be in the calm before the United States employment data storm this morning, Thursday April 2, with metals prices mixed, trading volume low and not much movement on equity indices for a change. Asian-Pacific equity indices were mixed this morning, but pre-market western futures were firmer with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up by 1.2% as at 7 am London time. Stocks in Asia initia...Read More
Cobalt trade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets. Unless otherwise stated, all prices are per lb on an in-warehouse (in-whs) basis. Delivered prices are netted back. Fastmarkets prices Click here for Fastmarkets' price assessment for standard-grade cobalt, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb. Click here for Fastmarkets' price assessment for alloy-grade cobalt, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb...Read More
Trade log for battery-grade lithium carbonate in China including trades, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets. Unless otherwise stated, all prices are per tonne on an ex-works China basis. Delivered prices are netted back. Fastmarkets prices Click here for Fastmarkets price assessment for lithium carbonate 99.5% Li2CO3 min, battery grade, spot price range exw China, yuan/tonne. Fastmarkets lith...Read More
Minor metals and ores and alloys producers that rely on shipping routes out of South Africa are warning that practical barriers to producing and transporting material outweigh any technical green light to export, amid conflicting instructions from the country's authorities. A notice from South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA) caused widespread confusion on Tuesday by saying mineral export...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday April 2 that are worth another look.Tata Steel has reduced output at its steel production sites in India and Europe due to decreased demand, and to obey the temporary regulations imposed to tackle the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic, the company said on Wednesday April 1.Norsk Hydro has decided to postpone adding 95,000 tonnes per...Read More
Demand for flat steel products in Turkey was weak in March because of the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic in the country, market participants told Fastmarkets on Thursday April 2.The first case of a Covid-19 infection was announced on March 11 in Turkey, and all schools were closed on March 15.Since then, several carmakers in the country have announced production stoppages.Tofas, which produced 26...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Northern Europe have inched downward day on day and further drops were expected, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday April 2.Prices were expected to go down because of poor demand and the pressure created by declining import offers.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe, was relatively stable at ?,?470.00 ($515.26) per...Read More
Domestic long steel prices in Turkey have continued to fall because of the coronavirus pandemic over the past week despite a slight recovery later in the week, sources said on Thursday April 2.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar) domestic, exw Turkey was 2,900-2,960 lira ($435-444) per tonne on Thursday, down from 2,950-3,030 lira per tonne last week.Prices have c...Read More
The Turkish long steel export markets continue to suffer from the restrictions arising from the Covid-19 pandemic, which have sharply reduced demand over the past week, sources said on Thursday April 2.Steel producers in Turkey reduced their rebar export offers to $380-390 per tonne fob on an actual weight basis this week, from last week's $390-395 per tonne.But buyers' bids were only heard around...Read More
Prices for imported steel billet in Egypt fell in the week to Thursday April 2, with market activity being stifled by the wider impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, sources told Fastmarkets.Demand is weak, and trading activity is limited, sources said.CIS-origin billet was on offer to Egyptian customers this week at $350-355 per tonne cfr, down from last week's $370-375...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.A 6% decline in the daily average 62% Fe iron ore fines benchmark last week contributed to the lowest quarterly price rise for the first quarter in five years, in spite of clear evidence of supply-side constraints. Although there were clear demand-related obstacles to iron ore suppliers raking in more typical, seasonal price...Read More
Iron ore export volumes from Brazil fell by 2.13% year on year in March, with the daily average falling by 15.48% in the same comparison, Fastmarkets understands.The country exported 21.71 million tonnes of iron ore last month, compared with 22.18 million tonnes the year before, according to figures released by the country's Ministry of Economy on Wednesday April 1.A higher number of working days...Read More