The lack of any last minute breakthrough in US-China trade talks has led to risk-off this morning, Monday 13 May, with money moving into haven assets.Lack of a US-China trade deal prompts risk-off European equities follow Asian equities lower, US treasury yields weaken Base metals In line with the escalation in trade tensions between the United States and China, most of the three-month base metals...Read More
The market for exports of hot-rolled coil (HRC) and cold-rolled coil (CRC) from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) was moderate during the week ended Monday May 13, with prices falling slightly.Prices went down with lower offers being heard and deals being agreed at reduced levels.The main export markets for CIS-origin flat steel were Turkey and the Middle East-North Africa (Mena) region...Read More
China's domestic hot-rolled coil market fell further on Monday May 13 after trading activity fell, while exporters too lowered their prices.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 4,020-4,030 yuan ($589-590) per tonne, down 10-20 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tianjin): 3,890-3,900 yuan per tonne, down 10 yuan per tonneHRC prices in China's major markets fell on Monday after mills lowered their offers by...Read More
The current trading environment would support higher domestic steel prices in Brazil, but low demand and a decrease in the cost of ferrous scrap were being considered before any adjustments were announced, steelmaker Gerdau has said."We will continue to watch how consumption evolves in the country to decide whether or not to increase prices," chief executive officer Gustavo Werneck told investors...Read More
Long-steel export prices from the Commonwealth of Independent States remain under pressure this week amid a lack of demand from importers and low competing offers from other export markets, Fastmarkets heard on Monday May 13.Fastmarkets MB's weekly price assessment for CIS export rebar was $460 per tonne fob Black Sea on May 13, unchanged week on week."The rebar price could drop by a further $5-10...Read More
The start of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan and a weak Turkish lira have made Turkey-origin rebar the most economical choice for Singaporean buyers, market sources said.Fastmarkets MB's weekly import price assessment for rebar into Southeast Asia - which mainly looks at cargoes sold into Singapore on a theoretical-weight basis - was $490 per tonne cfr for the week to May 13, down from $505 per...Read More
Turkish steel producers continued to book deep-sea scrap cargoes with the help of falling prices, sources said on Monday May 13.A steel producer in the Izmir region booked a Baltic Sea cargo, comprising 10,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $286 per tonne, 12,000 tonnes of shredded at $291 per tonne and 3,000 tonnes of bonus at $296 per...Read More
The depreciation of the Turkish lira has continued to drive the prices for domestic ship scrap and auto bundle scrap in opposite directions over the past week, sources said on Monday May 13.All four steel producers in the Izmir region have reduced their buy prices for domestic shipbreaking scrap by $10 per tonne over the past seven days.Three steel mills cut their buy prices for the material to $2...Read More
Seaborne iron ore pellet transaction volumes and prices remained robust in the week ended Friday May 10, while the corresponding figures for iron ore concentrate remained weak.PelletsThe weekly Fastmarkets MB 65% Fe Blast Furnace Pellet Index was $128.58 per tonne cfr China on May 10, up by $0.40 per tonne from a week earlier.A cargo of 64% Fe Indian Jindal pellet traded at $121-122 per tonne cfr,...Read More
The price range for CIS export slab has narrowed downward by $5 per tonne fob week on week, amid a weak market for finished steel, Fastmarkets heard on Monday May 13.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for CIS export slab was $450-460 per tonne fob on May 13, down from $450-465 per tonne fob a week earlier.CIS-origin slab offers to Europe were heard at $480 per tonne fob, market participants said...Read More
Domestic prices for rebar in eastern China dipped on Monday May 13 amid high selling interest among stockists. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 4,040-4,080 yuan ($592-597) per tonne, down 10 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): 3,910-3,960 yuan per tonne, unchangedSellers in eastern China lowered their prices slightly to secure more sales in an effort to destock. Many stockists are worried th...Read More
Mandated production cuts in northern China to reduce air pollution are likely to offset reduced demand caused by warmer weather in the country, market sources told Fastmarkets MB this week.While local authorities in Tangshan - China's steelmaking hub in the north - have ordered steelmakers to cut output to improve air quality, a move that typically supports prices, output is not expected to fall b...Read More
Brazil's Vale expects to return to its previous iron ore output target of 400 million tonnes per year only in the next few years, due to setbacks following a tailings dam disaster in Brumadinho city, in the country's southeastern Minas Gerais state."If you ask when Vale expects to produce around 400 million tonnes [per year] again, I would say between 2-3 years," the Brazilian miner's chief financ...Read More
China will implement import tariffs on over 5,000 types of United States' goods starting June 1, 2019, marking an escalation in the trade war between the two countries, the government announced on May 13.Last August, China said it would apply import tariffs of 25% on a series of US metal products including zinc and copper concentrates. Yet, at that time no timetable was confirmed. Starting ne...Read More
Zinc's three-month price on the London Metal Exchange fell by more than 2% at the close of trading on Monday May 13 following the fresh inflow of more than 8,000 tonnes into LME-registered warehouses in Europe. Total on-warrant LME zinc stocks are now above 90,000 tonnes for the first time since January and are trending higher after falling to a record-low of 41,900 tonnes in March. More than 30%...Read More
The market for exports of hot-rolled coil (HRC) and cold-rolled coil (CRC) from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) was moderate during the week ended Monday May 13, with prices falling slightly.Prices went down with lower offers being heard and deals being agreed at reduced levels.The main export markets for CIS-origin flat steel were Turkey and the Middle East-North Africa (Mena) region...Read More
Long-steel export prices from the Commonwealth of Independent States remain under pressure this week amid a lack of demand from importers and low competing offers from other export markets, Fastmarkets heard on Monday May 13.Fastmarkets MB's weekly price assessment for CIS export rebar was $460 per tonne fob Black Sea on May 13, unchanged week on week."The rebar price could drop by a further $5-10...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Monday May 13 that are worth another look.China will implement import tariffs on more than 5,000 types of goods from the United States starting June 1, 2019, marking an escalation in the trade war between the two countries, the government announced on Monday May 13. Fastmarkets reporters present 12 key things le...Read More
The International Wrought Copper Council (IWCC) has elected Dr Erwin Mayr, chief executive officer of the Wieland Group, to serve as chairman of the group, which is the international association for the copper and copper-alloy fabricating industry.Mayr succeeds Stefan Boel, formerly of Aurubis, who was the longest serving chairman in...Read More
Fastmarkets reporters present 12 key things we learned at LME Asia Week 2019 in Hong Kong during May 6-9. 1. LME is in talks with Guangdong local authority to establish warehouses in China Charles Li, chief executive officer of Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing (HKEX), said the London Metals Exchange is in talks with the Guangdong government to pilot establishing LME warehouses in mainland China. Li...Read More