The dip in tin prices over the past two months reflects technical factors and a drop in semiconductor sales but a rebound is hard to envision despite an largely solid fundamental backdrop.Weakness in the global semiconductor sector has contributed to an 11% drop in the LME three-month tin price since mid-April - the sharpest fall across the base metals.The three-month price fell just 2.9% in 2018...Read More
Global ferrous scrap prices trended downward in the week ended Friday May 3 due to low demand and high inventories held by steel mills.There was mixed sentiment about spot price trends. While most market participants expected a continued softening of prices, others expected prices to become firmer once holidays in Europe, Turkey, Japan and China came to an end. Weak steel markets in Turkey damp de...Read More
Key data from the Friday May 3 pricing session in London: Key drivers: - Rally pauses and spot activity slows; buyers in Europe and parts of Asia were out of the market for some of the week. Some buyers are believed to have covered their nearby requirements last month and are awaiting direction before stocking up any further after the rally plateaued over the past week. - Sellers have so far prove...Read More
Aluminium's three-month price on the London Metal Exchange fell over 1% at the close of trading on Friday May 3, with downward pressure emerging amid more than 230,000 tonnes of inflows over the week, while continued US dollar strength deters investors. Aluminium registered just over 10,000 lots traded at the close this afternoon, the lowest count since April 25, with thin volumes persisting due t...Read More
An overview of the battery raw materials markets and their price moves.Read More
This recent drop in copper prices is not reflective of the current tight supply and demand fundamentals and a rebound could take place as soon as next week, Codelco's chief commercial officer Roberto Ecclefield told Fastmarkets on Friday May 3."Once China re-opens on Monday, we should see copper prices rebound," Ecclefield said in an interview. "The current price doesn't reflect fundamentals."Mark...Read More
The dip in tin prices over the past two months reflects technical factors and a drop in semiconductor sales but a rebound is hard to envision despite an largely solid fundamental backdrop.Weakness in the global semiconductor sector has contributed to an 11% drop in the LME three-month tin price since mid-April - the sharpest fall across the base metals.The three-month price fell just 2.9% in 2018...Read More
Copper concentrates treatment charges (TCs) declined in early May after traders accepted recent tender tonnages at surprisingly low levels, which stretched the gap between acceptable purchase levels for traders and smelters to its widest in the past year.As of May 3, Fastmarkets' Asia-Pacific TC/RC index dropped to $60.8 per tonne/6.08 cents per lb, compared to $62.50 per tonne/6.25 cents per lb a...Read More
Comex exchange copper prices recovered in morning trading in the United States on Friday May 3, after the April US jobs report showed strong data, raising spirits in the equity markets.The copper price for July settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose by 4.65 cents on Friday to $2.8260 per lb.Earlier in the morning, the jobs report showed that 263,000 Americans had...Read More
Benchmark alumina prices are now trading at their lowest in over a year due to lack of buying appetite and excess cargoes in the market for May and June. Fastmarkets' benchmark alumina fob Australia index was last assessed at $351.49 per tonne on May 2 - its lowest level since the index was published at $349.88 per tonne on March 1, 2018. "There are a lot of cargoes being offered in the market at...Read More
With competition in the global steel markets remaining fierce, Fastmarkets provides an update on the new, progressing and closed trade cases from around the world in April 2019.The case list below includes only updates. For other continuing...Read More
Domestic prices for rebar in Poland have been supported by strong demand in the construction industry, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday May 3."Demand is good, which is normal at this time of the year," a Polish trader said. "But there is some pressure coming from unexpected scrap price decreases, because mills are...Read More
The light iron market in the UK has dropped in the past week, with traders cutting their prices amid weaker European export markets, particularly into Turkey, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday May 3.Moreover, with European scrap export markets into Turkey set to get weaker in the near term, UK consumer monthly delivery settlements for May are likely to drop by a similar amount, they said.Fastmark...Read More
Russian steelmaker Industrial Metallurgical Holding (IMH) will start production of steel at its new Tula Steel subsidiary this month, with plans to enter the billet export market in the coming months, Fastmarkets has learnt."Tula Steel plans to sell billet," a company source told Fastmarkets. "The volumes of offers will depend on circumstances in the raw materials and finished steel markets. Howev...Read More
The European Commission (EC) has proposed measures that would prevent the effects of anti-dumping or anti-subsidy duties being combined with the safeguard measures that have been applied on imports of certain steel products."Cumulation of anti-dumping or anti-subsidy measures with safeguards may lead to a greater effect than desirable, and this issue should be examined in due course," the EC said...Read More
Russia has criticized Mexico at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) for maintaining anti-dumping duties on Russian steel exports, which it claims are outdated, being based on pricing assessments using data from a different country.The Mexican government used this method for past dumping calculations on Russian steel because it is permitted under WTO rules where a government dominates an economy tha...Read More
Austenitic alloy steel scrap prices in Europe went down in the week ended Friday May 3 because of further losses in the nickel market, Fastmarkets has heard.Fundamentals in the market were unchanged and were not exerting pressure on prices. While some traders reported slow supply, this was matched by demand. All sources said that the fundamentals were balanced.In the UK, Fastmarkets' assessment...Read More
The Turkish steel mills extended their silence in the deep-sea scrap markets at the end of this week, wth no bookings made because they expected to achieve lower prices, sources said on Friday May 3.The most recent deep-sea transaction activity was heard on April 30, and sent prices down by more than $4 per tonne on the day.A steel mill in the Marmara region booked a US cargo, comprising 22,000 to...Read More
The price of shredded ferrous scrap imported into India corrected downward this week on a quiet market, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday May 3.Fastmarkets' weekly index for containerized imports of shredded scrap into India moved down to $331.59 per tonne cfr Nhava Sheva on Friday, from $334.65 per tonne cfr one week previously.Deals heard on the market for shredded material were $330, $333 and...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices remained flat on Friday May 3, with the major Chinese market still muted due to the ongoing Labor Day public holiday.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $94.17 per tonne cfr Qingdao, unchanged. MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $93.20 per tonne cfr Qingdao, unchanged. MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $97.27 per tonne cfr Qingdao, unchanged. MB 58%...Read More