An overview of the noble alloys markets and the reasons for any price moves.Read More
Key data from Fastmarkets' pricing session in Europe on Wednesday February 12.Key drivers The price range for ferro-titanium has been stable over the past week, with suppliers holding their offer prices against steady but low-key demand from consumers. No deals were reported, apart from in the scrap market where there were reports of almost 40 tonnes bought in the UK at the top end of the latest a...Read More
Transport restrictions in China affecting raw material supply amid the coronavirus outbreak have led to a more active molybdenum spot market in China and as a result have lifted prices in South Korea and Europe. Low inventories in China have forced buyers there to import more material and subsequently drive the alloy and oxide prices to their highest levels since October 2019, according to Fastmar...Read More
The prices of hollow steel sections in Europe remained flat this week, with eyes on the soon-to-be-exhausted import quota allocated to Turkey, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday February 12.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel sections (medium), domestic, delivered Northern Europe, was ?,?620-640 ($677-698) per tonne on Wednesday, unchanged week on week.Prices have remained steady des...Read More
Turkish pipe export prices have gone down over the past month on falling raw material prices and limited demand, sources said on Wednesday February 12.Fastmarkets' monthly price assessment for steel structural pipe, export, S235JR grade, EN10219, 2mm wall thickness, fob main port Turkey, was $510-515 per tonne on Wednesday, down from $545-550 per tonne in early January.The steel pipe producers in...Read More
Demand for aluminium and steel coil in China has come under strain while the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) crisis has allowed the gears of the country's automotive sector to grind to a halt.Many manufacturing plants across China - including those in the automotive segment - have paused operations in the past two weeks to February 12 after the government extended workers' Lunar New Year holiday to...Read More
The outbreak of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in China has weakened the country's rebar market in recent weeks, sending prices to their lowest in close to three years. Fastmarkets' February 11 assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar) domestic, ex-whs eastern China was 3,380-3,420 yuan ($485-490) per tonne, down 250-260 yuan per tonne from 3,640-3,670 yuan per tonne on January 23 - the last...Read More
India's recently announced national budget got a mixed response from the country's steel sector, with some describing it as "disappointing" while others said it was "promising," sources told Fastmarkets.The Indian government's $428 billion budget for 2020-21 was presented on February 1.Part of the budget concerned the soon-to-be-launched National Logistics Policy, which will include various infras...Read More
Outokumpu chief executive officer and president Roeland Baan will step down in May, the Finnish stainless steelmaker said on Friday February 7.He will continue in his role as the company's ceo until May 15, 2020. His successor has not yet been named by the company.Baan joined Outokumpu in January 2016....Read More
The three-month price of copper on the London Metal Exchange edged higher at the close of trading on Wednesday February 12, staying firmly above the $5,700 per tonne support level despite low turnover, while nickel similarly held above nearby support.Copper's outright price on the LME closed at $5,764 per tonne on Wednesday afternoon, falling from an intraday high of $5,783 per tonne but topping T...Read More
Contango has returned to the price of tin, but the spot markets have remained quiet on muted demand and uncertainty about the implications of the outbreak in China of novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV).London Metal Exchange tin price still down from earlier in the year, with coronavirus spreading.Tin imports to China largely halted; premiums flat in Taiwan, too.United States sees modest spot trade over...Read More
The price of steel mesh-quality wire rod was unchanged in Europe while market participants waited to see how the monthly European ferrous scrap prices would settle, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday February 12.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel wire rod (mesh-quality), domestic, delivered Northern Europe, remained at ?,?460-470 ($502-513) per tonne on February 12, the fourth conse...Read More
The downward price trend in the European domestic steel rebar markets was largely halted this week while participants waited to see where monthly ferrous scrap prices would settle, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday February 12.Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, delivered Southern Europe, was ?,?450-470 ($491-513) per tonne on Wednesday, unchanged week on...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday February 12 that are worth another look.China may not be the big steady steel rebar buyer that most of us in the market thought it was, the International Rebar Producers & Exporters Association (Irepas) said on February 5 with regards the impact of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV).Major Chinese copper smelter Daye Nonferrous,...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Tuesday February 11 that are worth another look.A block on the World Trade Organization's dispute settlement process has paralyzed progress in steel cases, including those pertaining to Section 232, which could result in a disparity between steel prices in the United States and those in the rest of the world, according to two trade expe...Read More
Trade disputes and geopolitical uncertainties had already made the prospects for global economic growth uncertain. A coronavirus has now added to the challenges facing financial markets.The epicenter of the virus is Wuhan, an important commercial hub in China that is home to 11.9 million people, including the country's largest student population. It is also a manufacturing hub, with around 500 fac...Read More
The latest bids, offers and deals in the global markets for rebar, wire rod, steel beams and other long steel products.Latest transaction: rebarRebarEast China, domestic, grade III 16-25mm...Read More
German steelmaker Thyssenkrupp has made changes to the management team of Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe ahead of the departure of the chairman of the executive board, the company said on February 12.Bernhard Osburg has been appointed as new chairman of the executive board of Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe, succeeding Premal Desai who will step down on February 29. Osburg has been chief commercial officer o...Read More
Gold Street Advisors (GSA) has expanded its risk advisory business with the additions of Robin Bhar, Kevin Moore, and Christian Clavadetscher.Company chief executive officer Lochlann Toolin said the departure of banks from the commodities markets in recent years has created opportunities for new teams to step in and advise companies in the metals trading and supply industry on risk management and...Read More
Demand for aluminium and steel coil in China has come under strain while the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) crisis has allowed the gears of the country's automotive sector to grind to a halt.Many manufacturing plants across China - including those in the automotive segment - have paused operations in the past two weeks to February 12 after the government extended workers' Lunar New Year holiday to...Read More