A summary of base metals premiums from across the globe for the week to Tuesday January 7.Click on...Read More
The three-month zinc price on the London Metal Exchange climbed by 1.3% by the close of trading on Tuesday January 7, topping gains in the complex amid moderately low turnover across the board, while the aluminium price shed 1% of over the afternoon. Zinc's outright price on the LME closed at $2,346 per tonne this afternoon, its highest closing price since November 18, 2019. Despite low turnover o...Read More
Former London Metal Exchange chief executive Garry Jones has been appointed chief executive officer of technology provider Perfect Channel, effective January 1, the company said. Jones, who joined Perfect Channel as a director in September 2019, will now seek to deliver a strategic business plan to work with a variety of partners across multiple asset classes, focusing on financial institutions, c...Read More
Fastmarkets has relaunched its ores and alloys cuts counter to track widespread production cutbacks amid the current low prices.A number of ores and alloys prices were at multi-year lows due to oversupply.Chrome ore and ferro-chrome prices were particularly subdued, prompting a series of production cuts while producers also dealt with rising costs.Fastmarkets' price assessment for ferro-chrome, 50...Read More
The Turkish deep-sea scrap import markets were relatively quiet on the second day of the working week, with the mills still in negotiations for February cargoes, sources said on Tuesday January 7.The steel producers in the country had been silent in the deep-sea markets over the past two weeks because of the year-end holiday periods. They resumed their purchases at the end of last week with four c...Read More
Japan is expected to divert more of its ferrous scrap export supply to Vietnam and Bangladesh in 2020 due to weaker demand from neighbor South Korea, market sources in Japan told Fastmarkets."South Korean demand for ferrous scrap is expected to fall further in 2020 compared with 2019, and Japanese scrapyards will have to target new markets to send their materials," a Japanese trader told Fastmarke...Read More
Steel-consuming sectors in Mexico should receive a boost from a gradual recovery in the Mexican economy this year, with optimism among participants in the scrap market slowly growing as a result.The country's gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to grow by 1.2% in 2020, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), although more recent forecasts from economists have been lower."We foreca...Read More
Some flat steel import prices in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia increased this week on higher offers, but demand was still weak because of the continuing New Year holidays in global markets, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday January 7.UAEOffer prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) from China were heard in the UAE at $500-510 per tonne cfr this week, while Indian HRC was offered at $520-525...Read More
Demand for flat steel products in Turkey was strong in December 2019 because of restocking purchase activity as well as globally increasing prices, market participants told Fastmarkets on Tuesday January 7.Local producers have now filled their order books until late March, sources added.Demand was strong in Turkey in November because of the rising prices, and continued to be strong in December.And...Read More
This year could look similar to 2019 on the merger and acquisitions front in the United States steel industry, with long products likely to be busier than flat products, according to analysts."People will get to doing deals [in 2020] much like [last] year - very selectively and where the strategic fit is right and they can bring some synergies to the table. I think that's what is really going to d...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Tuesday January 7 that are worth another look.Alexander Shevelev, chief executive officer of Russian steelmaker Severstal, says that the company has changed its culture quite quickly and substantially to focus on being a solutions provider.Brazilian vehicle output shrank by 3.9% year on year during December 2019, because higher domestic...Read More
Domestic and import prices for steel rebar and billet in the United Arab Emirates remained stable over the past week on limited demand, market sources said on Tuesday January 7.But market participants in the UAE said that prices could rise if raw materials costs continue to increase.Local rebar producers announced new prices on December 19.Billet importsImported billet...Read More
Chinese imports of ferro-niobium hit a 10-month high in November 2019, registering an increase of 75.4% month on month and 99.1% year on year, according to official but unconfirmed data seen by Fastmarkets.The 5,954 tonnes delivered to Chinese shores in November was the second highest amount imported by the country so far in 2019, following the 70,103 tonnes recorded in January. This compares with...Read More
The Turkish deep-sea scrap import markets were relatively quiet on the second day of the working week, with the mills still in negotiations for February cargoes, sources said on Tuesday January 7.The steel producers in the country had been silent in the deep-sea markets over the past two weeks because of the year-end holiday periods. They resumed their purchases at the end of last week with four c...Read More
The high-grade seaborne iron ore index rose to $107.30 per tonne cfr on Tuesday January 7, with market participants attributing the increase to healthy demand from steelmakers in China.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $95.11 per tonne, down $0.50 per tonne62% Fe Pilbara Blend fines, cfr Qingdao: $94.20 per tonne, down $0.50 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao:...Read More
Japan is expected to divert more of its ferrous scrap export supply to Vietnam and Bangladesh in 2020 due to weaker demand from neighbor South Korea, market sources in Japan told Fastmarkets."South Korean demand for ferrous scrap is expected to fall further in 2020 compared with 2019, and Japanese scrapyards will have to target new markets to send their materials," a Japanese trader told Fastmarke...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices were stable on Tuesday January 7 despite a pick-up in the futures market, with downstream demand remaining soft.Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,680-3,710 yuan ($528-532) per tonne, unchangedNorthern China (Beijing): 3,540-3,570 yuan per tonne, unchangedEnd users are gradually reducing their procurement rates with ahead of the Chinese New Year in late January.Stockists are...Read More
This year could look similar to 2019 on the merger and acquisitions front in the United States steel industry, with long products likely to be busier than flat products, according to analysts."People will get to doing deals [in 2020] much like [last] year - very selectively and where the strategic fit is right and they can bring some synergies to the table. I think that's what is really going to d...Read More
This year could look similar to 2019 on the merger and acquisitions front in the United States steel industry, with long products likely to be busier than flat products, according to analysts."People will get to doing deals [in 2020] much like [last] year - very selectively and where the strategic fit is right and they can bring some synergies to the table. I think that's what is really going to d...Read More
Alexander Shevelev, chief executive officer of Russian steelmaker Severstal, says that the company has changed its culture quite quickly and substantially to focus on being a solutions provider. p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; line-height: 18.0px; font: 18.0px 'FagoNoRegularLF-Roman'} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; line-height: 10.5px; font: 9.0px 'Antwerp Light'; min-height: 11.0px...Read More