The rising trend in the Chinese antimony market continued last week - tightness in concentrate supply and concerns about further production cuts while environmental inspections continue propelled prices there higher. Metal Bulletin assessed the MMTA Standard Grade II delivered duty paid antimony metal price at 52,000-52,500 yuan ($8,111-8,189) per tonne on Wednesday May 30, up 1,000 yuan from...Read More
Cobalt prices continued to fall during the second half of last week, and prices for both grades converged, amid continuing profit-taking and slower demand from consumers. Metal Bulletin assessed prices for low and high-grade cobalt metal at $42-43 per lb, in-warehouse, on Friday June 1, down 0.8% and 0.9% respectively compared with the midweek assessment. Consumers have taken a step...Read More
Turkish steel producers have continued to book deep-sea scrap cargoes, with prices weakening further, sources said on Monday June 4.A steel producer in the Marmara region booked a European cargo late on June 1, comprising 20,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (75:25), 18,000 tonnes of a mixture of plate and structural scrap (P&S) and HMS 1, and 2,000 tonnes of busheling, at an average price of $334 per tonne c...Read More
The North American division of the China National Certification and Inspection Group (CCIC) will resume inspections of scrap shipments following the end of a one-month suspension, CCIC said on Friday June 1. The CCIC's North American division will start accepting inspection applications on Friday June 8 and it takes at least five working days to arrange the date of the inspection, the group said i...Read More
Turkish domestic auto bundle scrap prices have gone down in line with the weakening imported scrap values, while ship scrap prices have remained stable over the past week, sources said on Monday June 4.A number of steel producers in the country have reduced their buy prices for auto bundle scrap by around TRY20-90 ($4-19) per tonne delivered.Alloy long steel mill Asil ??elik cut its buy price for...Read More
The Comex copper price edged higher on Monday June 4 on a weaker dollar and positive fundamentals for the US economy. Copper for July settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 2.7 cents or 0.9% to $3.1255 per lb. "This morning, global risk-taking appetite is positive because investors continue to digest the...Read More
Cobalt prices continued to fall during the second half of last week, and prices for both grades converged, amid continuing profit-taking and slower demand from consumers. Metal Bulletin assessed prices for low and high-grade cobalt metal at $42-43 per lb, in-warehouse, on Friday June 1, down 0.8% and 0.9% respectively compared with the midweek assessment. Consumers have taken a step...Read More
Umicore will build its first cathode materials production plant in Poland, and hopes to start supplying automotive-sector customers in Europe by 2020. Belgium's Umicore has chosen the city of Nysa in Poland as the location where it will build its first production plant to manufacture cathode materials for the European automotive market. Given the intention to start deliveries in 2020, the three pr...Read More
Offer prices for hot-rolled (HR) and cold-rolled (CR) steel sheet in Russia's Central region around Moscow, the principal steel-consuming region in the country, have started to go down after rising repeatedly since January.Metal Bulletin's weekly assessment of the price for Russia-origin 4mm HR sheet was 46,100-46,200 roubles ($741-742) per tonne cpt Moscow on Monday June 4, including VAT. This na...Read More
The market for hot-rolled coil (HRC) and cold-rolled coil (CRC) in the Commonwealth of Independent States continued to be poor over the past week because of unfavorable circumstances in most key outlets.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for CIS-origin HRC exports was $535-555 per tonne fob Black Sea on Monday June 4, down from $545-560 per tonne a week earlier."The Middle East has [its seas...Read More
Demand for flat steel in Turkey will remain moderate through June, but prices are believed to have bottomed during May, market participants told Metal Bulletin."Local demand is not good, but exports are good. I don't think prices will fall - they have bottomed already," one market participant said on Friday June 1."Our prices are low compared with global prices. In the United States, hot-rolled co...Read More
The finalization of Section 232 tariffs last week has prompted some developers to award building and steel contracts more quickly than usual, likely in an effort to avoid even higher steel costs in the future, one northeastern structural steel fabricator said. Developers awarded "quite a few" contracts immediately in the wake of news that President Donald Trump won't exclude Canada, Mexico and the...Read More
The purchasing managers' index (PMI) for the eurozone manufacturing sector fell to a 15-month low in May 2018 as the slowdown in the region's growth continued, data supplier IHS Markit said on Friday June 1.The final rating for May was 55.5, down from 56.2 in April, making it the fifth consecutive rating fall this year. However, this follows a record high in December 2017.A figure higher than 50 i...Read More
CIS export prices for rebar and wire rod continued to decline in early June under pressure from growing competition with Turkish suppliers as well as lower bids placed by customers.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for CIS rebar exports was $545-550 per tonne fob Black Sea on Monday June 4, against $545-555 per tonne fob Black Sea last week.Russia's Abinsk Electric Steel Mill was offering r...Read More
Turkish steel producers have continued to book deep-sea scrap cargoes, with prices weakening further, sources said on Monday June 4.A steel producer in the Marmara region booked a European cargo late on June 1, comprising 20,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (75:25), 18,000 tonnes of a mixture of plate and structural scrap (P&S) and HMS 1, and 2,000 tonnes of busheling, at an average price of $334 per tonne c...Read More
Turkish domestic auto bundle scrap prices have gone down in line with the weakening imported scrap values, while ship scrap prices have remained stable over the past week, sources said on Monday June 4.A number of steel producers in the country have reduced their buy prices for auto bundle scrap by around TRY20-90 ($4-19) per tonne delivered.Alloy long steel mill Asil ??elik cut its buy price for...Read More
Physical iron ore prices softened on Monday June 4 amid losses in China's steel and futures markets.Metal Bulletin 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $65.47 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down by $0.69 per tonneMetal Bulletin 58% Fe Premium Index: $53.51 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down by $0.05 per tonneMetal Bulletin 65% Fe Iron Ore Index: $86.30 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down by $0.10 per tonneMetal Bulletin 62% Fe China...Read More
Metal Bulletin is proposing a change to the publication day of its China stainless steel assessments and specifications of that for East Asia to better reflect trading fundamentals and align weekly price movements.From July 11, 2018, the China domestic grade 304 stainless steel cold-rolled coil (2mm) yuan per tonne in-warehouse price and the China domestic grade 430 2mm stainless steel cold-rolled...Read More
Japan has criticized the United States' imposition of anti-dumping tariffs on coated flat steel, calling them "inappropriate" and "regrettable." Japan Iron and Steel Federation chairman Koji Kakigi expressed his disappointment of the continuation of anti-dumping tariffs on Japan-origin zinc and chromium-coated flat steel sheet by the United States' International Trade Commission. "We believe that...Read More
The aluminium industry associations of the United States, the European Union, Canada and Japan have called for the creation of a Global Multilateral and Governmental Forum on Aluminium Overcapacity to drive development of an international plan to shrink world production.The Aluminum Association (US), European Aluminium, the Aluminium Association of Canada, and the Japan Aluminium Association have...Read More