China's domestic rebar prices edged up on Tuesday May 7 on trading activity generated by gains in the futures market, while the export segment was quiet despite less competition with the start of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 4,100-4,150 yuan ($607-614) per tonne, up 10 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): 3,990-4,040 yuan per tonne, widened upward by 10 y...Read More
The temporary truce on tariffs between China and the United States could be over, injecting a new round of uncertainty into the global financial markets and suspending hopes that a resolution to the countries' trade impasse was likely.US President Donald Trump has threatened to raise the tariff on $200 billion-worth of Chinese imports to 25% from 10% by Friday May 10. He also said that the US may...Read More
Outokumpu expects higher quarter-on-quarter earnings in April-June 2019, with "no significant changes" anticipated in the stainless steel market's dynamics, it said on Tuesday May 7.The Finnish stainless steelmaker expects its stainless steel deliveries for the second quarter to remain at a similar level to the 621,000 tonnes delivered in the first quarter of 2019. This was down from 644,000 tonne...Read More
China imported around 901,767 tonnes of chrome ore and concentrates in March, a drop of 20.6% month on month and a fall of 41.9% year on year, according to official but unconfirmed data seen by Fastmarkets. Meanwhile, China's chrome ore imports from South Africa, the world's largest chrome ore producer, came to 660,503 tonnes in March, accounting for around 73.2% of total shipments despite recordi...Read More
The temporary truce on tariffs between China and the United States could be over, injecting a new round of uncertainty into the global financial markets and suspending hopes that a resolution to the countries' trade impasse was likely.US President Donald Trump has threatened to raise the tariff on $200 billion-worth of Chinese imports to 25% from 10% by Friday May 10. He also said that the US may...Read More
Brazilian vehicle production increased by 0.50% year on year in April 2019 with a heated domestic market offsetting significantly lower export volumes, mainly to Argentina.Automotive output totaled 267,546 units last month, up from 266,140 units a year before, manufacturers' association Anfavea said on Tuesday May 7. Despite the slight increase, production totaled 965,393 units in the first four m...Read More
Outokumpu expects higher quarter-on-quarter earnings in April-June 2019, with "no significant changes" anticipated in the stainless steel market's dynamics, it said on Tuesday May 7.The Finnish stainless steelmaker expects its stainless steel deliveries for the second quarter to remain at a similar level to the 621,000 tonnes delivered in the first quarter of 2019. This was down from 644,000 tonne...Read More
Turkey imported 461,048 tonnes of flat steel in March 2019, down by 32.4% from the corresponding month in 2018, when 682,071 tonnes arrived in the country, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK).The country's total flat steel imports in January-March 2019 totaled 1,460,106 tonnes, 22.11% less than the 1,874,458 tonnes imported in the same period of 2018, due to the country's weak do...Read More
European wire rod producers are to call on the European Union to review its import safeguard quota for non-alloy and alloy wire rod products, they said this week."Since the imposition of safeguard measures by the European Commission (EC), non-integrated wire rod processors have seen certain quotas vanish at an unprecedented pace," the European Non-Integrated Wire Rod Processors Association (E...Read More
A summary of base metals premiums from across the globe for the week to Tuesday May 7.Please click...Read More
Weakening prices in the flat steel markets of Turkey and Europe, particularly for hot-rolled coil (HRC), meant that there were reduced bids for CIS export slab, Fastmarkets heard on Tuesday May 7.Slow trading both domestically and in the export outlets was the major reason for the drop in finished flat steel prices.Given these conditions, bids for CIS-origin slab dropped significantly, dragging th...Read More
The temporary truce on tariffs between China and the United States could be over, injecting a new round of uncertainty into the global financial markets and suspending hopes that a resolution to the countries' trade impasse was likely.US President Donald Trump has threatened to raise the tariff on $200 billion-worth of Chinese imports to 25% from 10% by Friday May 10. He also said that the US may...Read More
Outokumpu expects higher quarter-on-quarter earnings in April-June 2019, with "no significant changes" anticipated in the stainless steel market's dynamics, it said on Tuesday May 7.The Finnish stainless steelmaker expects its stainless steel deliveries for the second quarter to remain at a similar level to the 621,000 tonnes delivered in the first quarter of 2019. This was down from 644,000 tonne...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Tuesday May 7 that are worth another look.The temporary truce on tariffs between China and the United States could be over, injecting a new round of uncertainty into the global financial markets and suspending hopes that a resolution to the countries' trade impasse was likely. US President Donald Trump has threatened to raise the t...Read More
The temporary truce on tariffs between China and the United States could be over, injecting a new round of uncertainty into the global financial markets and suspending hopes that a resolution to the countries' trade impasse was likely.US President Donald Trump has threatened to raise the tariff on $200 billion-worth of Chinese imports to 25% from 10% by Friday May 10. He also said that the US may...Read More
Low-grade manganese ore prices have held relatively steady since rebounding from this year's lows in January, when market participants toned down fears of oversupply in the alloy market. Normally volatile low-grade manganese ore prices have held relatively steady since rebounding from this year's lows in January, after which market participants toned down fears of oversupply in the alloy market. F...Read More
When the London Metal Exchange amended its policies related to its physical delivery network a few years ago, it overlooked one key thing. The issue centers on LME's linked load-in/load-out (LILO) rule, which operates by linking the amount of metal a warehouse loads in to the amount it is obligated to load out for warehouses that have queues of over 50 days.The rule changes were part of package of...Read More
Gay Huey Evans will be the first female chairperson of the London Metal Exchange, replacing Brian Bender when he retires at end of the year, Fastmarkets understands. Huey Evans has spent over 30 years working within the financial services industry. She is currently a non-executive director of Itau BBA International Ltd, deputy chairperson of The Financial Reporting Council and board member...Read More
EU long steel market participants are preparing for a deluge of Turkey-origin material to hit European shores in July when buyers race to fill up new quotas, sources told Fastmarkets. That means the European Commission's year-long quotas for Turkish rebar and wire rod - which begin on July 1 - are likely to be filled up within the same month, the Fastmarkets MB research team believes. Turkey-...Read More
London Metal Exchange base metals prices failed to rally during the afternoon session on Tuesday May 7, with the furor surrounding fresh trade tension between the United States and China serving only to exacerbate bearish market sentiment. None fared worse than the LME three-month nickel price, which dipped to a low of $11,990 per tonne low on May 7, the first time the price has dropped below $12,...Read More