The first transaction of the week led to a fall in prices after a Turkish mill booked a mixed steel scrap shipment from the United States, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday July 24.Based in the Marmara region of Turkey, the mill bought a US-origin cargo comprising 21,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $294 per tonne, 22,000 tonnes of shredded material at $299 per tonne and 2,000 tonnes...Read More
Physical iron ore prices tumbled on Wednesday July 24 amid low trading activity and news of more supply coming from Vale's Brazilian operations. Fastmarkets' index for iron ore 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $114.97 per tonne, down $2.85 per tonne. Fastmarkets' index for iron ore 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines, cfr Qingdao: $114.89 per tonne, down $2.85 per tonne. Fastmarkets' index for iron ore 62% Fe lo...Read More
Vale will increase the supply of its flagship Brazilian Blend fines (BRBF) after receiving authorization to bring more of its suspended iron ore mining operations come back online.The Brazilian miner will partly resume dry processing operations at its 13-million-tonne-per-year Vargem Grande Complex within 24 hours, with the National Mining Agency's authorization coming five months after a suspensi...Read More
Iranian producers were spurred to raise their export offer prices at the end of July after several weeks of active trading left them with reduced availability of material for foreign sales, Fastmarkets heard on Wednesday July 24.Offers of Iranian billet from August rolling were limited, while some producers had already started to offer September-rolling volumes, according to market participants. O...Read More
Turkey produced 16.994 million tonnes of crude steel in January-June 2019, down 10.14% on the 18.912 million tonnes produced in the first six months of 2018.According to the Turkish Steel Producers Association (T???oeD), the fall in output was largely due to the negative sentiment that has been dominating Turkey's domestic steel market since August 2018 when the country's lira lost significan...Read More
China's rebar prices fell on Wednesday July 24 amid news that Vale was resuming operations at one of its iron ore complexes, which would raise supply of the steelmaking raw material. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,920-3,960 yuan ($570-575) per tonne, down 40-50 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): 3,880-3,910 yuan per tonne, down 20 yuan per tonneVale, the world's biggest iron ore produce...Read More
Key data from Fastmarkets' Wednesday July 24 pricing session in Europe:Key drivers The ferro-titanium market has stabilized after a run of losses and while there was one sale around $4.50 per kg and below the current range, it was in isolation, with most sources expecting a stabilizing in the market. The ferro-titanium market is establishing a price floor, with producer supply cited to be in...Read More
Fastmarkets is proposing changes to the specifications of its price assessments for stainless steel cold-rolled coil, Asia grade 304 (2mm), cif East Asian port, $/tonne and stainless steel hot-rolled coil, Asia grade 304, cif port East Asia, $/tonne.The proposed amendments to the location and quality of product to be assessed are made in response to changing market conditions. This will enable Fas...Read More
The domestic prices for hollow steel sections in both Northern and Southern Europe widened this week, with increases proposed for trading done after the summer break, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday July 24.Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel sections (medium), domestic, delivered Northern Europe, was ?,?615-630 ($687-704) per tonne on Wednesday, widening downward from ?,?620-630 per ton...Read More
Turkey produced 16.994 million tonnes of crude steel in January-June 2019, down 10.14% on the 18.912 million tonnes produced in the first six months of 2018.According to the Turkish Steel Producers Association (T???oeD), the fall in output was largely due to the negative sentiment that has been dominating Turkey's domestic steel market since August 2018 when the country's lira lost significan...Read More
German steelmaker ThyssenKrupp approved investment funds to build a 230,000 tonne per year chromium coating line for packaging steel at its Rasselstein site in Andernach, western Germany, it said late in the week ending on July 19.The new coating line will be a replacement for the current line, following a change in European Union (EU) regulations, with production capacity remaining approximately...Read More
China is imposing anti-dumping duties on imports of stainless steel billet, slab, hot-rolled plate and coil produced in the European Union, Japan, South Korea and Indonesia, the country's Ministry of Commerce said on Monday July 22.The duties will apply for five years beginning on July 23 after a final ruling in an anti-dumping investigation found that the imports caused substantial dama...Read More
Base metals prices traded on the London Metal Exchange continued to capitalize on marginal gains made in the morning session on Wednesday July 24, with the pervading macro optimism and a weaker US dollar overshadowing modest turnover.Nickel rebounded 2.6% to close at $14,545 per tonne, retracing some the significant gains made last week when the three-month contract hit a $15,115-per-tonne high on...Read More
The dramatic shift in the dynamics of the lithium market over the past four years has changed business practices and increased demand for price transparency. The dramatic shift in the dynamics of the lithium market over the past four years has changed business practices and increased demand for price transparency. Fueled by anticipated growth in the global battery market and the consequent price s...Read More
An overview of the minor metals markets and the reasons for any price moves.Read More
Key data from Fastmarkets' Wednesday July 24 pricing session in Europe:Key drivers The ferro-titanium market has stabilized after a run of losses and while there was one sale around $4.50 per kg and below the current range, it was in isolation, with most sources expecting a stabilizing in the market. The ferro-titanium market is establishing a price floor, with producer supply cited to be in...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday July 24 that are worth another look.While Vedanta cheered over South Africa's recent court ruling against the Zambian government's liquidation of its majority-owned Konkola Copper Mines, Zambian officials rebuked the decision and denied the enforceability of the foreign ruling that determines the future of the country's l...Read More
The dream of building a new world-class copper-gold mine in Pakistan in an area bordering Afghanistan and Iran has been dashed, for now at least. The saga of Tethyan Copper Co's (TCC) efforts to develop the Reko Diq mine found resolution last week with an International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) ruling in favor of TCC following a dispute that has rumbled on for years.TCC,...Read More
The dramatic shift in the dynamics of the lithium market over the past four years has changed business practices and increased demand for price transparency. The dramatic shift in the dynamics of the lithium market over the past four years has changed business practices and increased demand for price transparency. Fueled by anticipated growth in the global battery market and the consequent price s...Read More
China's hot-rolled coil sellers cut their prices on Wednesday July 24 amid weak demand, although some participants believe a rebound could take place in days due to ongoing production curbs in the northern region.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,830-3,850 yuan ($557-559) per tonne, down 50 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tianjin): 3,830-3,840 yuan per tonne, down 20 yuan per tonneSpot prices fell...Read More