Expectations for a recovery in Brazilian steel demand this year have been postponed to 2020 since the economy did not grow as previously forecast, national steel institute A??o Brasil said on Thursday December 5.The institute forecast apparent steel consumption at 21.78 million tonnes next year, a 5.2% increase from the 20.71 million tonnes expected in 2019. This year's outlook was cut f...Read More
With competition in the global steel markets still fierce, Fastmarkets provides an update on the new, progressing and closed trade cases from around the world in November 2019.1. US: stainless pressure pipe from China, Malaysia, Thailand and VietnamRead More
Glencore has cut its production guidance for cobalt in 2020 to 25,000-33,000 tonnes, down by about a third from 2019's 41,000-45,000 tonnes, the Swiss miner-trader said this week.In an investor presentation on Tuesday December 3, the company said that for 2021 and 2022 it expects to produce 28,000-36,000 tonnes of cobalt. It said the decline in production was mainly a...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States continued to edge upward on higher mill offers, limited spot activity and increased scrap costs.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $28.08 per hundredweight ($561.60 per short ton) on Thursday December 5, up by 0.5% from $27.93 per cwt on December 4.US HRC prices have not been calculated above $28 per cwt si...Read More
Expectations for a recovery in Brazilian steel demand this year have been postponed to 2020 since the economy did not grow as previously forecast, national steel institute A??o Brasil said on Thursday December 5.The institute forecast apparent steel consumption at 21.78 million tonnes next year, a 5.2% increase from the 20.71 million tonnes expected in 2019. This year's outlook was cut f...Read More
Northern European steelmakers are expected to achieve increased domestic transaction prices in December, partially reflecting higher offers, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday December 5.Fastmarkets' steel hot-rolled coil index domestic, exw Northern Europe, was ?,?431.63 ($479.15) per tonne on December 5.The assessment is based on "workable" prices reported by market sources at ?,?425-430 per t...Read More
Large regional construction projects will remain the main driver of steel demand in the Middle East in the medium term, steel sector professionals told Fastmarkets in a survey ahead of the 23nd Middle East Iron & Steel Conference in Dubai later this month.Infrastructure construction in Qatar for the 2022 Football World Cup and in the United Arab Emirates related to the Dubai Expo 2020 exhibition i...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Thursday December 5 that are worth another look.Chinese stainless steel prices in both the domestic and export markets fell over the past week amid bearish sentiment stemming from the high inventories held at a major mill in eastern China.More of the world's copper looks likely to be priced in China from next year, with the Shanghai Int...Read More
If you are a producer or consumer, or are active in the physical markets, then you had better be aware of a new set of regulations that will make it all the more important for you to choose the right logistics partner from next year.The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has ruled that from January 1, 2020, the marine sector will have to reduce sulfur emissions by more than 80% by switching...Read More
More of the world's copper looks likely to be priced in China from next year, with the Shanghai International Energy Exchange (INE) set to launch a new contract tradable by international market participants.The decision to launch, pending regulatory approval, would enable market participants based outside China to trade copper based on a Chinese price, sources told FastmarketsChina, which is the w...Read More
The three-month nickel price on the London Metal Exchange was the biggest gainer at the close of trading on Thursday December 5, staging a modest recovery after reaching a five-month low earlier in the day, while turnover topped the complex over the day. The LME nickel price closed at $13,275 per tonne at 5pm, recovering from an intraday low of $13,030 per tonne but failing to close near its daily...Read More
Seaborne coking coal prices remained stable on Thursday December 5, with transaction prices seeing only mild movements in recent days.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $136.79 per tonne, down $0.01 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $147.22 per tonne, up $0.13 per tonne Hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $120.70 per tonne, unchangedHard coking coal, cfr J...Read More
The three-month zinc price on the London Metal Exchange was lower during morning trading on Thursday December 5, with the metal failing to hold on to recent gains while volumes traded topped the complex. Zinc's outright price fell to an intra-morning low of $2,217.50 per tonne, a loss of 1.3% against Wednesday's closing price of $2,246 per tonne. At just under 2,500 lots exchanged as at 9.10am Lon...Read More
The three-month nickel price on the London Metal Exchange was the biggest gainer at the close of trading on Thursday December 5, staging a modest recovery after reaching a five-month low earlier in the day, while turnover topped the complex over the day. The LME nickel price closed at $13,275 per tonne at 5pm, recovering from an intraday low of $13,030 per tonne but failing to close near its daily...Read More
With competition in the global steel markets still fierce, Fastmarkets provides an update on the new, progressing and closed trade cases from around the world in November 2019.1. US: stainless pressure pipe from China, Malaysia, Thailand and VietnamRead More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Thursday December 5 that are worth another look.Chinese stainless steel prices in both the domestic and export markets fell over the past week amid bearish sentiment stemming from the high inventories held at a major mill in eastern China.More of the world's copper looks likely to be priced in China from next year, with the Shanghai Int...Read More
A summary of Glencore's production guidance for copper, zinc and nickel over 2019-2022, as well as its production changes in major projects.In brief 2020 copper production guidance is modestly lower than that for 2019 due to transition to care and maintenance of the Mutanda copper-cobalt mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in late November 2019.Copper refining and c...Read More
The first deal for first-quarter aluminium ingot supply to Japan in 2020 has been concluded at a premium of $83 per tonne basis cif main Japanese ports (MJP), market sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday December 5. This deal marks the lowest quarterly deal since the fourth quarter of 2016, when the benchmark settled at $75 per tonne, and it is 14.4% lower than the 2019 fourth-quarter benchmark of...Read More
The UK's Serious Fraud Office (SFO) is investigating miner-trader Glencore, it said on Thursday December 5. "The SFO confirms it is investigating suspicions of bribery in the conduct of...Read More
Europe's largest copper producer, Aurubis, will continue deliveries to customers after a crane collapsed at its Olen plant in Belgium, the company said on Wednesday December 4. The accident occurred on Tuesday November 19, when a transport crane collapsed in the electrolysis section of its copper tankhouse. The company said the electrolysis tanks were not affected by the collapse. "Aurubis was abl...Read More