Aluminum Corp of China (Chalco) has become the world's second-largest aluminium producer - overtaking Russian aluminium producer UC Rusal - by increasing output to 4.17 million tonnes, Fastmarkets understands.Rusal produced 3.75 million tonnes of aluminium last year.Chalco's 15.5% year on year output increase came amid a "complicated and fickle market environment," chairman Lu Dongliang said...Read More
Andrew Green has been promoted to executive director of the International Zinc Association (IZA), the trade group said on Monday April 1. CHICAGO - Andrew Green has been promoted to executive director of the International Zinc Association (IZA), the trade group said on Monday April 1. Green is a 20-year veteran of the zinc industry and was involved in...Read More
Nornickel, one of the world's top nickel producers, has announced plans to develop a mining project and nickel concentrator in its home country, Russia, to help it to achieve a projected 15% increase in nickel and copper production by 2025, Fastmarkets has heard.The company will invest 90 billion roubles ($1.37 billion) between now and 2023 in an attempt to develop the South Cluster mining project...Read More
Codelco's own refined copper output totaled 1.68 million tonnes in 2018, compared with 1.73 million tonnes in the previous year, the Chilean company said on Friday March 29 in its earnings report. Falling copper content in mined ore was one of the main reasons why overall production by the state-owned group reached 1.81 million tonnes during the year, below 1.84 million tonnes in 2017, according t...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were predominantly higher at the close of trading on Monday April 1, supported by strength in both the Chinese and United States' manufacturing data despite continued market concerns over the health of the global economy. Despite reported strength from the manufacturing sector, US retail sales were weaker than expected in February at -0.4%, down from...Read More
The US copper price built on Friday's momentum with the base metals complex receiving a boost from strong Chinese manufacturing data on Monday April 1.The copper price for May settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose by 1.25 cents to $2.9520 per lb. Overnight, the Chinese official manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) rose to 50.5 in March, beating the exp...Read More
Copper concentrate treatment and refining charges (TC/RCs) for Asia Pacific continued to drop in the second half of March in the absence of Las Bambas output, while Chinese smelters are prepared to accept significantly lower spot TCs for the second quarter this year. Fastmarkets' spot copper concentrate index for Asia Pacific was calculated at $66.7 per tonne/ 6.67 cents per lb on March 25, d...Read More
Prices for merchant bar quality (MBQ) steel were flat in the United States over the past month amid reports of mostly steady market conditions, while confirmed transactions for Mexican material have caused import prices to dip slightly. Fastmarkets AMM assessed domestic 2- x 2- x 1/4 -inch angle merchant bar at $37.05 per hundredweight ($741 per short ton) fob mill on Friday March 29, unchanged...Read More
Plate prices in the United States were steady last week but concerns have grown that they could come under pressure again in future weeks, market participants said.Fastmarkets AMM's price assessment for cut-to-length plate was unchanged at $46 per hundredweight ($920 per short ton) on Friday March 29.Market participants have reported plate prices in a range of $45-57 per cwt.Lead times have s...Read More
The European Commission (EC) has approved the acquisition of two Italian steel service centers, affiliated with Italian steelmaker Ilva, by ArcelorMittal and Italian company Coils Lamiere Nastri (CLN).The service centers in Legarno and Paderno Dugnano, Italy, were among the Ilva assets acquired by ArcelorMittal, the EC said on Friday March 29. It approved the acquisition under EU Merger Regulation...Read More
A sale of CIS-origin slab to Italy was heard agreed last week at a price lower than in other recent deals, sending the CIS export slab price assessment downward on Monday April 1.A cargo containing 25,000-30,000 tonnes of Ukrainian slab was reported sold to Italy at $510-512 per tonne cfr, equivalent to around $490 per tonne fob Black Sea. But market participants had expected such a development.Th...Read More
Turkey's flat steel exports increased by 38.12% year on year in February 2019 amid increased demand in Europe, according to the latest figures from the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK).Yet current demand for flat steel is weak in the country's key export markets, so export volumes may decrease in the next few months, Turkish market participants told Fastmarkets.Turkish producers have been offe...Read More
Prices for shipbreaing scrap prices in Turkey have gone down slightly this week with one steel mill reducing its buying prices, but auto bundle scrap prices remained stable over the past week, sources said on Monday April 1.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for Turkish domestic melting scrap from shipbreaking was $320-325 per tonne on April 1, narrowing downward from the $320-330 per tonne deli...Read More
Turkish steel mills continued to hold back from the deep-sea scrap markets to watch which way the market moves after the mayoral elections held across the country yesterday, sources said on Monday April 1.The main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) has claimed victories in the coastal Aegean and Mediterranean provinces, as well as in major cities including Istanbul. It also claims to have...Read More
The latest bids, offers and deals in the global markets for iron ore, pig iron, direct-reduced iron and other steelmaking raw materials.Latest transaction: iron oreIron oreVale, Global...Read More
Iron ore prices continued to strengthen on Monday April 1 on more news about supply disruptions.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $88.69 per tonne cfr Qingdao, up $1.88 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $87.81 per tonne cfr Qingdao, up $1.88 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $90.23 per tonne cfr Qingdao, up $1.41 per tonne. MB 58% Fe Premium Index: $79.86 per tonne cfr Qingdao...Read More
Seaborne iron ore concentrate prices softened further and pellet prices strengthened a bit in the week ended Friday March 29. Trading remained inactive for both.ConcentrateThe weekly MB 66% Fe Iron Ore Concentrate Index stood at $96.73 per tonne cfr China on Friday, down by $0.90 per tonne from a week earlier.The daily MB 65% Fe Iron Ore Index averaged $97 per tonne cfr China last week compared wi...Read More
The weakness in the seaborne coking coal spot market persisted on Monday April 1 with participants anticipating further price decreases."End users are staying by the sidelines mostly because the market is still in a downtrend. This, coupled with the short-term uncertainties in the coke market, means seaborne coking coal prices will not get too much support," a...Read More
Rio Tinto has issued a warning over a possible iron ore output loss of 14 million tonnes due to disruptions to its production in Australia caused by a cyclone that hit the country's west coast last month.The miner said on Monday April 1 that it was expecting its Pilbara iron ore shipments in 2019 to be at the lower end of its 338-350 million tonnes guidance.The miner last week declared force majeu...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were all higher during morning trading on Monday April 1 after being boosted by forecast-beating manufacturing data from China.Optimism about a potential Sino-US trade deal and low stocks in many of the metals also continue to bolster sentiment. The three-month nickel price rose furthest and is now trading comfortably above $13,200 per tonne, up by a...Read More