U.S. equity index futures were lower this morning. S&P 500 futures were down 5 points in pre-opening trade. Index futures responded to concerns about spread of a corona virus in China. The Shanghai Composite Index plunged 84.23 to 2,976.53.Index futures were virtually unchanged following release of the Weekly Jobless Claims report at 8:30 AM EST. Consensus was an increase to 212,000 from 204,0...Read More
A summary of base metals premiums from across the globe for the week to Tuesday January 21.Please click...Read More
The three-month nickel price on the London Metal Exchange was lower at the close of trading on Tuesday January 21, settling at its lowest price since December 10 against moderate turnover, while a fresh inflow of some 40,000 tonnes pushed copper futures lower.Nickel's outright price on the LME closed at $13,665 per tonne in the afternoon, settling at its lowest level for more than a month, while t...Read More
Beginning in 2020, Fastmarkets will review its pricing methodologies and price specifications across all its Price Reporting Agency (PRA) divisions - Metals & Mining and Forest Products - on an annual basis rather than twice per year. The decision is in line with the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) principles for PRAs, which sets out global standards for orderly and fa...Read More
A thaw in trade relations between the United States and China is lending broad support to commodity prices, with the yuan strengthening against the dollar.The Chinese currency was trading at 6.87 yuan to $1 on Tuesday January 21, down by 1.6% from a month earlier, and down by 3.8% from a peak reached in September 2019.The strength of the yuan against the dollar has been a barometer for US-China tr...Read More
Beginning in 2020, Fastmarkets will review its pricing methodologies and price specifications across all its Price Reporting Agency (PRA) divisions - Metals & Mining and Forest Products - on an annual basis rather than twice per year. The decision is in line with the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) principles for PRAs, which sets out global standards for orderly and fa...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Tuesday January 21 that are worth another look.China's hot-rolled coil market was quiet on January 21, with producers suspending their operations before the Chinese New Year, while concerns have emerged over post-holiday demand due to the spread of a mysterious respiratory virus that has claimed several lives.SolGold chief executive off...Read More
Zinc and lead smelter Nyrstar has appointed Simon Dent, a longtime sales manager and trader, as its new head of commercial as of January 2020.The role will see Dent leading a commercial team that is responsible for all acid and byproduct...Read More
Beginning in 2020, Fastmarkets will review its pricing methodologies and price specifications across all its Price Reporting Agency (PRA) divisions - Metals & Mining and Forest Products - on an annual basis rather than twice per year. The decision is in line with the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) principles for PRAs, which sets out global standards for orderly and fa...Read More
Fortis Group has appointed Sebastian Voigt as its chief executive officer, replacing Kris Guns, who held the position at the minor metals and chemicals company since 2014.Voigt is moving into the role of CEO, "in order to drive sales activities both externally and internally," the company said in a release on January 21, and will remain in close cooperation...Read More
Turkish steel producers have continued to hold back from the deep-sea scrap markets, expecting prices to go even lower, sources said on Tuesday January 21.Prices in the deep-sea scrap markets fell by around $15 per tonne late last week, after a steel mill in the Izmir region booked a US cargo of 35,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (95:5) at $295 per tonne cfr late on January 15.This would have put the HMS 1&...Read More
Beginning in 2020, Fastmarkets will review its pricing methodologies and price specifications across all its Price Reporting Agency (PRA) divisions - Metals & Mining and Forest Products - on an annual basis rather than twice per year. The decision is in line with the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) principles for PRAs, which sets out global standards for orderly and fa...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Tuesday January 21 that are worth another look.China's hot-rolled coil market was quiet on January 21, with producers suspending their operations before the Chinese New Year, while concerns have emerged over post-holiday demand due to the spread of a mysterious respiratory virus that has claimed several lives.SolGold chief executive off...Read More
Profit-taking ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday and nervousness over the outbreak of a new coronavirus in China have led to the market becoming more risk-off this morning, Tuesday January 21.Asian equities are weaker, led by a 2.7% decline in the Hang Seng.Hong Kong's credit rating was cut one position to Aa3 by ratings agency Moody's for its handling of the unrest in the country.Base metalsThre...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States might have peaked on high output and market predictions that ferrous scrap prices might weaken in February, some sources warned.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $29.69 per hundredweight ($593.80 per short ton) on Tuesday January 21, down by 0.8% from $29.94 per cwt on Friday January 17 and down by 2.7% from $3...Read More
Prices for steel plate in the United States were flat after producers continued to experience slow bookings in the new year.Attaining the full extent of announced price hikes has posed a challenge for mills after some buyers stocked up in the early stages of an upswing that started in December 2019. A post-New Year's bounce has been elusive so far, with distributors reporting that material has bee...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Northern Europe have jumped, with support coming from good order books at mills, solid demand and a lack of competitive import offers, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday January 21.Fastmarkets' daily steel HRC index domestic, ex-works Northern Europe, rose by ?,?13.93 per tonne day on day to ?,?463.41 ($513.95) per tonne on Tuesday, from ?,?449.48 per tonne....Read More
Recent mill price hikes have continued to drive up high-carbon wire rod prices in the United States, while rising ferrous scrap costs have boosted cold-heading quality (CHQ) wire rod prices.Fastmarkets' assessment for steel wire rod (high carbon), fob mill US, rose to $35 per hundredweight on Friday December 20, up 2.9% from $34 per cwt one month earlier.Over the same pricing period, Fastmarkets'...Read More
Domestic and import prices for steel rebar and billet in the United Arab Emirates increased over the past week, with most buyers' orderbooks filled until late February, market sources said on Tuesday January 21.Steel rebar and billet prices increased in line with the price hike initiated by local UAE rebar producers, who announced higher prices in December 2019 because of strong demand a...Read More
Beginning in 2020, Fastmarkets will review its pricing methodologies and price specifications across all its Price Reporting Agency (PRA) divisions - Metals & Mining and Forest Products - on an annual basis rather than twice per year. The decision is in line with the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) principles for PRAs, which sets out global standards for orderly and fa...Read More