The US copper cathode premium has logged its first movement since July 2018, widening upward amid expectations of higher demand and shorter supply during the second quarter.Fastmarkets AMM assessed the US copper cathode premium at 7-7.75 cents per lb delivered to the Midwest on Tuesday March 26, up by 0.25 cents on the high end of the range from 7-7.5 cents per lb previously.While the first q...Read More
The government of Guinea is seeking to develop and integrate its mining sector in order to use the country's mineral resources to secure diversified domestic economic growth, according to the west African country's minister of mines and geology.Abdoulaye Magassouba told delegates to Fastmarkets' 25th annual bauxite and alumina conference in Miami, on Tuesday March 26, that a key driver for his gov...Read More
The federal court in Bel?(C)m, in the northern Brazilian state of Par??, has scheduled a conciliatory hearing between Norsk Hydro's alumina refinery Alunorte and the country's federal prosecutors' office (MPF) on April 4, regarding embargoes on the refinery's production and the use of its waste material deposit No2 (DRS2).Alunorte, the largest alumina producer in the world, has been running at onl...Read More
Chilean copper producer Codelco has decided to terminate an engineering and construction contract with Canada-based SNC-Lavalin and to take over a project at its Chuquicamata smelter to ensure compliance with new environmental regulations in the South American country, it said on Monday March 25.Codelco is the largest copper producer in the world, and Chuquicamata, in northern Chile, is the larges...Read More
Flooding of the Mississippi River and its tributaries in the last three weeks has delayed aluminium barge shipments from New Orleans to the US Midwest, according to Fastmarkets sources, and this could lead to increased spot trading in the second quarter of the year.So far, the delays have not impacted the US Midwest aluminium premium, which remained supported at 19.25-19.5 cents per lb a...Read More
Trading activity in the CIS export billet market enlivened toward the end of March amid renewed demand from North Africa, and Algeria in particular.An Algerian long steel producer booked two lots of Russian billet, each of 20,000 tonnes, scheduled for shipment in April at $492 per tonne cfr.The deals were not included in the calculation of Fastmarkets' CIS export...Read More
The prices for flat steel products imported into the United Arab Emirates have been stable over the past week with levels of demand remaining low but consistent, Fastmarkets heard on Tuesday March 26.Demand among end-users has been weak, so buyers were unwilling to place orders for large tonnages, sources told Fastmarkets.In addition, some market participants were expecting prices to come down bec...Read More
Prices for steel rebar and billet in the United Arab Emirates were again unchanged this week as a result of continuing moderate demand, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday March 26.Local rebar producers rolled over their domestic prices for rebar on March 13 and have not announced any changes since then.Rebar importsOman was offering rebar to the UAE at $530-540 per tonne cpt, but no new...Read More
Export prices for Chinese cold-rolled coil (CRC) and hot-dipped galvanized coil (HDG) were little changed in the week to Tuesday March 26 amid limited trading activity ahead of a reduction in China's value-added tax (VAT) next month. Both CRC and HDG export prices had increased for the past six consecutive weeks up to March 19. China will reduce its VAT to 13% on April 1 from the current 16% for t...Read More
Exporters of Chinese hot-rolled coil lowered their prices slightly on Tuesday March 26 on sparse trading, while those in China's domestic market were remained largely steady amid slowing downstream demand.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,850-3,870 yuan ($573-576) per tonne, unchangedNorthern China (Tianjin): 3,800-3,810 yuan per tonne, narrowing downward 10 yuan per tonneWhile prices have been...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices resumed their downward trend on Tuesday March 26 after holding steady for a day, with bearish sentiment brought about by the upcoming decrease of value-added tax in the country weighing on the market. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,800-3,850 yuan ($566-573) per tonne, down 30-40 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): 3,820-3,860 yuan per tonne, down 10-20 yuan...Read More
The latest bids, offers and deals in the global markets for hot-rolled coil, cold-rolled coil, hot-dipped galvanized coil, pre-painted galvanized iron, steel plate, steel sheet and other flat steel products. Latest transaction: hot-rolled coilHot-rolled coilEast China, domestic,...Read More
The latest bids, offers and deals in the global markets for rebar, wire rod, steel beams and other long steel products. ...Read More
Vale's output of metallurgical coal dropped by 11.40% year-on-year in 2018, after bad weather affected its operations in Mozambique early last year, the company said on Tuesday March 26.Production totaled 6.16 million tonnes last year, compared with 6.95 million tonnes in 2017, it added.Coal output was affected by heavy rainfall during the first quarter of 2018, as well as other bottlenecks in com...Read More
Iron ore fines production from Brazilian miner Vale increased during 2018 but just fell short of the earlier guidance of 390 million tonnes, according to a production report published by the company on Tuesday March 26.Vale's iron ore output in 2018 was 384.6 million tonnes, 4.95% above the 366.5 million tonnes of 2017. In October last year, the company had confirmed its annual production guidance...Read More
Physical iron ore prices stayed rangebound for a second day on Tuesday March 26 as market participants waited on news of the full impact of Cyclone Veronica on Australian iron ore operations.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $85.23 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.58 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $84.35 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.58 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $87....Read More
Prices for seaborne premium hard coking coal were mostly stable on Tuesday March 26, although the emergence of a lower offer for second-tier products put some pressure on the segment.An April-loading cargo of a top Australian brand sold at a 4% premium against an index to an end user in eastern China while a shipment of premium mid-vol hard coking coal was traded at $203 per tonne cfr China, sourc...Read More
China imported 1.16 million tonnes of coking coal from Australia in February, down 25% on the year amid port restrictions that emerged at the end of January. The country imported 1.54 million tonnes of Australian coking coal in February a year earlier, according to Chinese customs data.Customs authorities in China had issued verbal directives to end users that Australian coking coal would undergo...Read More
The United States' copper market was modestly lower on Tuesday March 26 morning amid a lack of trading action and industry participants seeking fresh market catalysts. The copper price for May settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange inched down 0.30 cents to $2.8535 per lb. Copper trading has been fairly quiet over the past several weeks, with modest global growth...Read More
Arbitrage for copper, aluminium, zinc and nickel imported into China on Monday March 26*Copper -$132.83 (-893.62 yuan) Aluminium -$266.47 (-1,792.59 yuan) Zinc -$147 (-988.88 yuan) Nickel -$309.55 (-2,082.41 yuan) *Fastmarkets calculates the physical arbitrage for import into China daily by using SHFE...Read More