A 50:50 joint venture between Luxembourg-based trader/steel producer Duferco and United States steelmaker Nucor Corp has announced plans to build a ?,?150 million steel beam rolling mill in Brescia, Northern Italy.The Duferdofin-Nucor mill is expected to be fully operational by mid-2022 and will have an annual production of more than 1 million tonnes of...Read More
Demand for flat steel in Turkey improved in May especially in the export market, after the United States halved its import tariffs for Turkish steel to 25%, market participants told Fastmarkets. And local producers have now filled their order books until August, they said on Friday May 31. Turkish steel prices also began to increase from May 17, when the US duties wer...Read More
An overview of the minor metals markets and the reasons for any price moves.Read More
Domestic prices for cold-rolled coil (CRC) have moved up this week despite trading activity remaining slow, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday June 5.The reason behind the increase was a combination of upward sentiment in hot-rolled coil, which is used as the feedstock for CRC, and an expected reduction in flat steel output in Europe.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic CRC in Nort...Read More
Domestic transaction prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) in the EU have moved up over the past week and steelmakers were looking for further price rises, market sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday June 5.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic HRC in Northern Europe was ?,?485-495 ($546-557) per tonne ex-works on Wednesday, up by ?,?5 per tonne week-on-week.The assessment represented tran...Read More
The benchmark copper price London Metal Exchange ended 1.5% lower on Wednesday June 5, leading the rest of the base metals lower.The three-month copper price closed at $5,807 per tonne, not far above its 2019-to-date low of $5,725 per tonne. "Our technical indicators suggest LME copper is still in a prevailing downtrend. We would not be surprised by renewed selling pressure," Fastmarkets base...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday June 5 that are worth another look.Nickel market analysts were resolutely bearish during a pricing panel at Fastmarkets' seventh International Nickel conference in Amsterdam on Wednesday June 5, forecasting that the London Metal Exchange three-month nickel price is unlikely to breach $13,000 per tonne this year. ArcelorMittal...Read More
The GFG Alliance, owner of global steelmaker Liberty House, has appointed Neil Barrell global head of integration and performance, it said on Wednesday June 5.Barrell will begin his new role on July 1 and will have "a remit to optimize GFG's growing network of manufacturing operations," GFG Alliance said.Liberty House owns several steel mills across the...Read More
The global alumina market has become more sentiment-driven over the past year and knee-jerk reactions have become more common, market sources told Fastmarkets.A significant part of this change was a consequence of the chaos that developed in the market after producer Norsk Hydro was compelled to declare force majeure at its Alunorte alumina refinery in Brazil in March 2018."If I look back, this is...Read More
Troubled UK long steel producer British Steel entered compulsory liquidation on May 22. Fastmarkets examines the reasons behind the company's recent struggles, from uncertainty about Brexit and a slump in orders, to rising costs for raw materials.Brexit uncertaintyThe future of British Steel remains uncertain, with the UK's Insolvency Service approaching "more than 80 potential trade purchasers" t...Read More
The benchmark copper price London Metal Exchange ended 1.5% lower on Wednesday June 5, leading the rest of the base metals lower.The three-month copper price closed at $5,807 per tonne, not far above its 2019-to-date low of $5,725 per tonne. "Our technical indicators suggest LME copper is still in a prevailing downtrend. We would not be surprised by renewed selling pressure," Fastmarkets base...Read More
Nickel market analysts were resolutely bearish during a pricing panel at the Fastmarkets' seventh International Nickel conference in Amsterdam on Wednesday June 5, forecasting that the London Metal Exchange three-month nickel price is unlikely to breach $13,000 per tonne this year. The LME three-month price is currently trading below $12,000 per tonne, hitting an intraday high of $11,860 per...Read More
China's hot-rolled coil prices slid further on Wednesday June 5 amid persistently thin trading, though some exporters showed little willingness to sell any lower.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,870-3,880 yuan ($561-562) per tonne, down 10 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tianjin): 3,800-3,810 yuan per tonne, narrowing downward 10 yuan per tonnePrices continued to drop, with trading being thinner...Read More
Prices for rebar produced and delivered in Southern Europe widened upward by ?,?5 per tonne on Wednesday June 5 on limited trading, but weak demand continued, market participants told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic rebar in Southern Europe rose to ?,?495-515 ($557-579) per tonne delivered on Wednesday from ?,?495-510 per tonne delivered on May 29."The price has...Read More
Key data from the Wednesday June 5 pricing session in Europe.Key drivers- The European ferro-titanium price fell for the second consecutive week after six weeks of stability. - Demand for ferro-titanium was muted short term, although one source said it had picked up over the past week.- One...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday June 5 that are worth another look.Nickel market analysts were resolutely bearish during a pricing panel at Fastmarkets' seventh International Nickel conference in Amsterdam on Wednesday June 5, forecasting that the London Metal Exchange three-month nickel price is unlikely to breach $13,000 per tonne this year. ArcelorMittal...Read More
The London Metal Exchange hopes to drive nickel stocks back onto the exchange with new warehouse proposals to be announced in the summer, vice-president of sales Alberto Xodo said on Wednesday June 5.LME nickel stocks dropped to around 160,000 tonnes on June 3-4 this year, compared with 446,676 tonnes in January 2016, when the LME warehouse reform to end delivery queues was implemented."The wareho...Read More
Tin flows into the London Metal Exchange late in May and June are beginning to put pressure on tin premiums basis the regions we follow, with the US ingot premiums narrowing downward on Tuesday June 4. An additional influx to LME Baltimore warehouses pressured US premium down. European premiums hold with futures prices closer to today's. Chinese premiums extend lengthy flatline trend....Read More
A summary of London Metal Exchange warrant premiums from across the globe for the week to Wednesday June 5. Please click...Read More
The global alumina market has become more sentiment-driven over the past year and knee-jerk reactions have become more common, market sources told Fastmarkets.A significant part of this change was a consequence of the chaos that developed in the market after producer Norsk Hydro was compelled to declare force majeure at its Alunorte alumina refinery in Brazil in March 2018."If I look back, this is...Read More