Prices for flat steel products imported into the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia have remained stable over the past week, with levels of demand low but consistent, Fastmarkets heard on Tuesday April 16.Demand among end-users has been weak, so buyers were unwilling to place orders for large tonnages, sources told Fastmarkets.Stock levels were low in both countries so, if prices were to start...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Tuesday April 16 that are worth another look.Increasing demand for graphite cathode for new energy vehicles (EV) and its cheaper price compared with synthetic graphite is turning the attention of the market to the price of flake graphite, delegates at Fastmarkets' Battery Materials Conference in Shanghai heard last week. Engelhart Commo...Read More
Chinese steel mills are ignoring low bids from overseas buyers on expectations of continued strength in China's domestic market over the remainder of April, sources told Fastmarkets MB this week.Expectations of a supply drop have also improved sentiment in the spot market.Steel prices in China have been on an upward climb since the end of the Lunar New Year. Domestic hot-rolled coil prices in east...Read More
China's domestic rebar market participants had mixed reactions toward futures losses on Tuesday April 16. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 4,050-4,130 yuan ($604-616) per tonne, widened by 10-20 yuan per tonne on both endsNorthern China (Beijing): 4,040-4,060 yuan per tonne, up 30-40 yuan per tonneRebar futures fell during the day, market participants responded to it differently. Some of them co...Read More
The state court of Minas Gerais (TJMG), in Brazil's southeastern region, partially suspended on Tuesday April 16 a previous injunction that was keeping Vale's Brucutu iron ore mine halted.The decision came after a request from the municipality of S??o Gon??alo do Rio Baixo, where the mine is located.The Brazilian miner shouldn't be prohibited from running the operations, as that could "severely hu...Read More
Turkish steel producers resumed their deep-sea scrap purchases on Tuesday April 16 at slightly higher prices, but it was still unclear in which direction the market was moving, sources said.A steel mill in the Iskenderun region booked a European cargo late on April 15, comprising 17,500 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (75:25) and 7,500 tonnes of bonus at an average price of $308 per tonne cfr.The cargo was sche...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices continued to follow the downward trend on Tuesday April 16, while the seaborne spot market remained thin. MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $94.78 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.64 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $93.56 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.64 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $96.70 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $1.87 per tonne. MB 58% Fe Pr...Read More
The Commonwealth of Independent States export slab price slid by mid-April on pressure from the weakening finished flat-steel market in both the CIS and the global market due to subdued buying activity, Fastmarkets learned.Recent slab offers from CIS to Turkey were heard at $500 per tonne cfr, equivalent to $485 per tonne fob Black Sea, while the latest sales to Europe were all finalized at the sa...Read More
China's domestic rebar market participants had mixed reactions toward futures losses on Tuesday April 16. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 4,050-4,130 yuan ($604-616) per tonne, widened by 10-20 yuan per tonne on both endsNorthern China (Beijing): 4,040-4,060 yuan per tonne, up 30-40 yuan per tonneRebar futures fell during the day, market participants responded to it differently. Some of them co...Read More
The UG2 chrome ore price fell again on Friday April 12 after activity lessened due to market participants waiting for Chinese mills' next ferro-chrome tender releases; meanwhile falling demand pushed down the high-carbon ferro-chrome assessment in Europe. UG2 and Turkish lumpy ore prices in China drop Domestic alloy price in China weakens Alloy markets in Japan, South Korea, Europe fa...Read More
The state court of Minas Gerais (TJMG), in Brazil's southeastern region, partially suspended on Tuesday April 16 a previous injunction that was keeping Vale's Brucutu iron ore mine halted.The decision came after a request from the municipality of S??o Gon??alo do Rio Baixo, where the mine is located.The Brazilian miner shouldn't be prohibited from running the operations, as that could "severely hu...Read More
Australian miner Rio Tinto has reduced its 2019 iron ore production guidance to 333-343 million tonnes, from 338-350 million tonnes, 100% basis, as estimated at the end of fourth quarter of 2018.The lower production guidance was due to a slower ramp up and ongoing disruptions to shipments caused by weather and other disruptions, the miner said. Most of Rio Tinto's iron ore output originates from t...Read More
A summary of Rio Tinto's production results for the three months ended March 31, 2019, as well as its full-year production guidance.In brief Iron ore production at the company's Pilbara operations in Western Australia totaled 67 million tonnes (100% basis) in January-March 2019, 9% lower than the same period of 2018 after production was disrupted by tropical cyclone Veronica in March and a fire at...Read More
The state court of Minas Gerais (TJMG), in Brazil's southeastern region, partially suspended on Tuesday April 16 a previous injunction that was keeping Vale's Brucutu iron ore mine halted.The decision came after a request from the municipality of S??o Gon??alo do Rio Baixo, where the mine is located.The Brazilian miner shouldn't be prohibited from running the operations, as that could "severely hu...Read More
A summary of base metals premiums from across the globe for the week to Tuesday April 16.Please click...Read More
Fastmarkets research led a bullish charge on the London Metal Exchange lead cash price, projecting it to rise as high as $2,200 per tonne in the fourth quarter of 2019 at the International Lead & Zinc Conference on Tuesday April 16, 2019.Despite waning demand for the heavy metal in the face of ecological concerns, Fastmarkets research has adopted a bullish stance for the material in the short term...Read More
The three-month zinc price on the London Metal Exchange fell by more than 3% at the close of trading on Tuesday April 16, settling just above $2,800 per tonne while fresh inflows did little to narrow a wide backwardation in the metal's nearby spreads. Zinc's nearby cash/three-month spread was most recently in a backwardation of $89 per tonne, with inflows of more than 14,000 tonnes into European w...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Tuesday April 16 that are worth another look.Increasing demand for graphite cathode for new energy vehicles (EV) and its cheaper price compared with synthetic graphite is turning the attention of the market to the price of flake graphite, delegates at Fastmarkets' Battery Materials Conference in Shanghai heard last week. Engelhart Commo...Read More
Chinese steel mills are ignoring low bids from overseas buyers on expectations of continued strength in China's domestic market over the remainder of April, sources told Fastmarkets MB this week.Expectations of a supply drop have also improved sentiment in the spot market.Steel prices in China have been on an upward climb since the end of the Lunar New Year. Domestic hot-rolled coil prices in east...Read More
The three-month zinc price on the London Metal Exchange fell by more than 3% at the close of trading on Tuesday April 16, settling just above $2,800 per tonne while fresh inflows did little to narrow a wide backwardation in the metal's nearby spreads. Zinc's nearby cash/three-month spread was most recently in a backwardation of $89 per tonne, with inflows of more than 14,000 tonnes into European w...Read More