China's rebar prices were flat in both the domestic and export markets on Wednesday July 31, with demand being reported as steady but weak.Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,920-3,940 yuan ($569-572) per tonne, unchangedNorthern China (Beijing): 3,830-3,850 yuan per tonne, unchangedRebar futures picked up in the morning before retreating in the afternoon, but the early gains failed to stimulate...Read More
World manganese ore supply reached only 1.66 million tonnes in June 2019, down by 3.4% year-on-year, according to the International Manganese Institute.June supply rose by slightly less than 1% compared with May, according to figures from IMnI's latest research, published on Wednesday July 31.Supply from Africa and the Middle East came to 951,000 tonnes, up by 10% year-on-year but down by 3% compa...Read More
Key data from Fastmarkets' Wednesday July 31 pricing session in Europe: Key drivers Tightness of availability on a spot basis and an increase in buying inquiries for August and September have encouraged suppliers to hold their offer prices around the top end of the current range, while UK producer FE Mottram has yet to restart production after a fire damaged its plant in April. The all...Read More
The following Fastmarkets minor metals prices changed on Wednesday July 31:Minor metalsAntimony max 100ppm Bi, in-whs Rotterdam $/tonne: $5,950-6,200 per tonne from $5,950-6,150Bismuth 99.99% Bi min, in-whs Rotterdam, $/lb: $2.80-2.95 per lb from $2.75-2.90Cobalt alloy grade,...Read More
A fresh wave of stockpiling activities boosted the Chinese cobalt metal spot market price on Wednesday July 31. Fastmarkets assessed the price of cobalt 99.8% Co min, exw China at 222,000-232,000 yuan per tonne ($12.83-13.53 per lb, minus China VAT) on Wednesday, up 0.9% from 220,000-230,000 yuan per tonne on July 26. Renewed speculative buying this week was prompted by a combination of an ea...Read More
Chinese subsidy reforms will cool down the electric vehicle (EV) market and weigh on battery demand in the second half of 2019, Umicore chief executive officer Mark Grynberg said in a conference call on Wednesday July 31.The Belgian battery raw materials producer maintained a forecast for stable or falling income in 2019 when it reported its results for the first half of the year on Wednesday. Pro...Read More
Glencore expects to report earnings before interest and tax (Ebit) losses within its marketing department of $350 million for the first half of 2019 due to a sharp drop in cobalt prices. The trader-miner cited a 58% year-on-year drop in cobalt prices in the first half of 2019, referencing Fastmarkets' price assessment for cobalt standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam, which averaged $17 per lb in the fi...Read More
Fastmarkets on Wednesday July 31 launched weekly export price assessments for stainless steel cold-rolled coil, grade 304 (2mm), fob China, $/tonne and stainless steel hot-rolled coil, grade 304, fob China, $/tonne.The launch of these assessments following a month-long consultation reflects China's status as a major exporter of stainless steel. They will serve as important benchmarks for the inter...Read More
Glencore has cut its ferro-chrome production guidance for 2019 by 10% to 1.48 million tonnes as part of its extended winter shutdown, the company said on Wednesday July 31. The trader-miner had already reduced its output guidance by 50,000 tonnes to 1.64 million tonnes in April due to "additional maintenance and extended winter shutdowns, amid reduced power availability/challenges in South Af...Read More
The following Fastmarkets UK non-ferrous scrap and foundry ingot prices changed on Wednesday July 31:Aluminium scrapGroup 1 pure 99% & litho, delivered consumer UK, ?/tonne: ?1,280-1,320 per tonne from ?1,260-1,300Clean HE9 extrusions, delivered consumer...Read More
Equities sold off after the US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) suggested that its rate cut was simply a mid-cycle adjustment rather than the start of monetary easing; the US Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down by 1.23%. Metals followed equities lower but better Chinese manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) data may provide support; China’s Caixin PMI climbed...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were mixed this morning. S&P 500 futures were unchanged in pre-opening trade. Index futures were virtually unchanged following release of the Weekly Jobless Claims report at 8:30 AM EDT. Consensus was an increase to 213,000 from revised 207,000 last week. Actual was 215,000.Shopify advanced $23.69 to $341.57 after reporting higher than consensus second quarter earning...Read More
Three-month base metals prices traded on the London Metal Exchange universally closed down at the afternoon kerb on July 30, with a strengthened dollar complex and inflows across all metals, except zinc, exerting downward price pressure.An increasingly macro-sensitive base metals complex may be reacting to United States President Donald Trump's assertions, via social media, that current US-Sino tr...Read More
French multi-metals miner Eramet's Weda Bay Indonesian nickel pig iron (NPI) project, which houses an estimated 10,000-tonne deposit of laterite nickel ore, will come online in the second half of 2020.The project is being developed with Chinese stainless steel producer Tsinghan, which is undertaking all construction costs and will hold a subsequent 43% stake in the venture, and will focus on NPI p...Read More
The London Metal Exchange three-month zinc price increased during morning trading on Tuesday July 30, making a steady approach toward $2,500 per tonne amid broadly low turnover and continued US dollar strength. Volumes traded in the galvanizing metal were moderate as of 8:55am, but led a broadly lackluster complex with 2,200 lots exchanged. Reaching an intra-morning high of $2,488 per tonne,...Read More
The accelerated ramp-up of the new Cobre Panama copper mine in the central American country has brought the start of its commercial production forward by several months to before the end of the third quarter, according to owner First Quantum Minerals.The company had previously expected to begin commercial production at the mine in Panama, which is the industry's only major greenfield project and w...Read More
China's leading stainless steel mills have kept their high-carbon ferro-chrome tender prices for August unchanged from the prior month.Tsingshan Group and Baosteel announced August tender prices of 6,296 yuan ($913) per tonne and 6,300 yuan per tonne respectively on Friday July 26, flat with those announced for July. This was followed by Taiyuan Iron & Steel (Tisco) announcing on Tuesday that it w...Read More
Zijin Mining's 150,000-tonne-per-year copper smelter in Northeast China's Heilongjiang province will be commissioned on Sunday August 18, sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Fastmarkets."The igniting of the new furnace is set for August 18 and raw material will be fed into the smelter from September," one source said. Construction of the smelter began in May 2017 and it has capacity t...Read More
French multi-metals miner Eramet's Weda Bay Indonesian nickel pig iron (NPI) project, which houses an estimated 10,000-tonne deposit of laterite nickel ore, will come online in the second half of 2020.The project is being developed with Chinese stainless steel producer Tsinghan, which is undertaking all construction costs and will hold a subsequent 43% stake in the venture, and will focus on NPI p...Read More
Intense buying from Chinese speculators and foreign traders over the past two weeks is unlikely to cause China's cobalt metal market to slip into a significant supply deficit in the near term, market participants told Fastmarkets.Steady production of cobalt metal in China amid weak downstream consumption during the slower summer months and extensive importing have limited the effect that recent st...Read More