Mergers and acquisitions in the metals and mining sector may have slowed overall but battery metals deal activity has begun to accelerate, according to a report by consultancy EY. Deal value for rare earths and lithium assets was up 22% year on year in the first half of 2018, with companies increasingly looking to capitalize on future demand for electric vehicles (EVs), the report noted. "Mining a...Read More
Demand for flat steel in Turkey will remain moderate throughout August, but prices are not expected to fall because there is strong export demand, market participants told Metal Bulletin on Thursday August 2.Local producers have filled their order books until the end of September, and are planning to increase their prices for October bookings, despite weak local demand.Stock levels are not high in...Read More
The latest metal markets news and price moves to start the North American day on Thursday August 2.Copper prices on the London Metal Exchange consolidated during morning trading on Thursday August 2, unperturbed by news of strike action at BHP's Escondida mine in Chile, the world's largest copper mine.Dipping marginally over the morning session, copper's three-month price has fallen just under 3%...Read More
Good morning from Metal Bulletin's offices in Asia as we bring you the latest news and pricing stories on Thursday August 2. Base metals prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were under pressure during morning trading on Thursday, following a ratcheting up of trade tensions between the United States and China on Wednesday.Check Metal Bulletin's live futures report here. Afarak has announced the...Read More
GFG Alliance, the owners of international metals group Liberty House, have appointed Mahendra Singh Mehta to lead its growing business in India, the company said this week.Mehta was formerly chief executive officer at Indian mining company Vedanta Resources.His appointment follows India's National Company Law Tribunal's (NCLT) approval of Liberty House's acquisition of troubled Indian special...Read More
Base metals on the London Metal Exchange finished mostly lower at the close of trading on Thursday August 2, pressured by the re-emergence of trade tensions between the United States and China in addition to a seasonal slowdown over the summer period.Falling 2% over the afternoon, nickel prices continue to track lower on macroeconomic factors, while declining stocks, robust demand and a large cont...Read More
Comex copper prices have extended the latest downturn and are now trading at the lowest point since June 20 on Thursday August 2 morning in the US, due to another round of trade worries. Copper for September settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange dipped 1.55 cents or 0.6% to $2.7320 per lb. The contract also hit a low of $2.7075 per lb.Ongoing trade tensions between t...Read More
With available stocks at record lows, aluminium spreads on the London Metal Exchange are increasingly volatile. More than 200,000 tonnes of aluminium was freshly canceled on the exchange during July across Europe and Asia at a time when a significant backwardation took hold of the spreads. The benchmark cash/three-months was at $50 per tonne backwardation on July 16, with all the nearby spreads al...Read More
Turkish steel mills pulled back from the deep-sea scrap markets again on Thursday August 2, keeping prices relatively stable.Mills broke their silence in trading activity on Wednesday when a steel mill in the Marmara region booked a European cargo, comprising 20,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (75:25), 12,500 tonnes of bonus and 2,500...Read More
Steel billet import prices decreased slightly this week in Egypt with lower offers in the market, while domestic rebar prices were unchanged, sources told Metal Bulletin on Thursday August 2.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for domestic rebar in Egypt on August 2 was stable at E ?12,525-12,528 ($700) per tonne ex-works.The country's major rebar producer, Ezz Steel, is still offering the ma...Read More
Labor unrest has spread throughout South America and threatens to envelop the entire continent and flip the copper market back into a sustained deficit after a strike vote at Chile's largest copper mine (by production).It had been a quiet year for labor negotiations this year, with miners and their respective unions agreeing on comprehensive contracts without any work stoppages. But after millions...Read More
The world's largest refined nickel and palladium producer, Norilsk Nickel, has submitted an appeal against a Botswanan ruling made in June 2018, designed to prevent the company from defending itself in the London Court of International Arbitration.The ruling was the court's response to Nornickel's claim to recover $277 million worth of debt from Botswanan state-owned mining enterprise BCL, who had...Read More
In response to a "harsh business environment", five companies under major Japanese steelmaker Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corporation (NSSMC) Group will integrate and reorganize their welded stainless steel pipe and tube businesses, the group announced on Thursday August 2.The change will take place around April 1, 2019, after Nisshin Steel Co., Ltd becomes a wholly-owned subsidiary of NSSMC. Ni...Read More
Comex copper prices have extended the latest downturn and are now trading at the lowest point since June 20 on Thursday August 2 morning in the US, due to another round of trade worries. Copper for September settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange dipped 1.55 cents or 0.6% to $2.7320 per lb. The contract also hit a low of $2.7075 per lb.Ongoing trade tensions between t...Read More
With available stocks at record lows, aluminium spreads on the London Metal Exchange are increasingly volatile. More than 200,000 tonnes of aluminium was freshly canceled on the exchange during July across Europe and Asia at a time when a significant backwardation took hold of the spreads. The benchmark cash/three-months was at $50 per tonne backwardation on July 16, with all the nearby spreads al...Read More
The European Commission (EC) is currently investigating German copper giant Aurubis' proposed sale of its rolled-copper product business to its counterpart Wieland-Werke after the latter failed to dismiss competition concerns, the EC said on Wednesday August 1.The EC will conduct an in-depth investigation until December 10 on whether the takeover will reduce competition in the supply of key copper...Read More
US domestic and imported rebar prices are steady this week, with the Section 232 tariffs - implemented on June 1 - effectively pricing imports out of the market. And despite concerns over supply tightness and transport issues, there is little indication that this will change in the near term, sources said.American Metal Market's assessment for domestic rebar held at $35-36 per hundredweight (...Read More
The latest bids, offers and deals in the global markets for rebar, wire rod, steel beams and other long steel products. Latest transaction: rebarRebarEgypt, domestic (El Garhy Steel), rebar, offered at...Read More
The latest bids, offers and deals in the global markets for steel billet, slab and bloom. Latest transaction: billetBilletCIS, export, billet, offered...Read More
Three-month base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were up across the board by an average of 0.7% on the morning of Thursday August 2. Zinc led the gains with a 1.3% increase to $2,572 per tonne, while copper was up by 0.7% at $6,168 per tonne. This follows a downbeat day on Wednesday when the complex closed with losses averaging 2.7%, led by a 4.8% drop in nickel and 3.6% fall in zinc. T...Read More