Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange slumped by the 5pm close on Wednesday March 7, with uncertainty stemming from the latest developments over the US' Section 232 probe leading to a sell-off.Aluminium was the most traded metal of the complex today, with more than 20,000 lots changing hands by the close. Its price fell 1.6% - it concluded below support at $2,100 per tonne.The cash/three...Read More
Nickel premiums in Europe crept higher on Tuesday March 7 on tight availability and declining London Metal Exchange nickel stocks, while Asian nickel premiums were stable due to the sustained negative arbitrage in China and amid slow trading activity. European nickel premiums higher due to tight availability Quiet trading activity reported in both China and other Asian regions US nick...Read More
Around 2.5 million tonnes of copper output is exposed to high disruption risks this year in Chile, the country's copper commission said at Metal Bulletin's International Copper conference in Madrid on Wednesday March 7. The figure represents 43.4% of the total forecast output for 2018 from the world's top copper producing country, Jorge Cantallopts, director of public planning and research with Co...Read More
Europe's largest copper smelter, Aurubis, is open to exploring merger and acquisition (M&A) opportunities outside of the continent while it looks to double down on processing and refining raw copper, chief executive officer J? 1/4 rgen Schachler told Metal Bulletin in an interview. "The whole world is becoming one region. Copper and its pre-products are travelling quite well so we are looking arou...Read More
Spain's Atlantic Copper will be looking to maximize output at its Huelva smelter even as it expects the copper concentrates market to tighten further, the company's chief executive officer (CEO) Javier Targhetta told Metal Bulletin in an interview.Atlantic Copper, which is the third largest copper smelter in Europe and acts as a key outlet for copper concentrate units from mines within its owner F...Read More
An overview of the minor metals markets and the reasons for any price moves.Read More
Copper demand derived from the shift to electric vehicles (EV) is expected to be constrained by availability of other key metals, including cobalt, a panelist said at Metal Bulletin's 31st International Copper Conference in Madrid on Wednesday March 7. "That demand for copper will only be required if we can find other elements. If we don't have other things, we can't even produce the electric cars...Read More
The restriction on imports of some copper scrap products to China has already caused the industry to make some process changes but many questions are still unanswered, a panel of scrap experts said at the Metal Bulletin Copper conference.The number of licenses granted by the Chinese government for copper scrap imports dropped by 94% year on year to account for 136,685 tonnes in the first two...Read More
Turkish steel mills have booked more deep-sea scrap for April, with prices rising slightly on strong demand for rebar and billet in the domestic market, sources told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday March 7."Steel mills have already sold a number of billet cargoes to the domestic market at around $585-590 per tonne ex-works," a Turkish source said."Rebar demand in the domestic market is also strong, [s...Read More
Comex copper prices dipped in the US morning on Wednesday March 7 with a confluence of bearish signals, including a potential trade war and higher dollar, weighing on the base metals complex. Copper for May settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 2.80 cents or 0.9% to $3.1310 per lb. "Most of the base metals remain on a back footing this morning and that seems to...Read More
Base metals traded on the London Metal Exchange are down across the board by an average of 0.3% this morning, Wednesday March 7. Nickel leads the decline with a 0.9% drop to $13,520 per tonne, while the rest are off between less than 0.1% and 0.3%, with three-month copper prices at $6,977 per tonne.Volume has been average with 6,272 lots traded as of 06.48am London time. Precious metals prices are...Read More
Domestic prices for cold-rolled coil (CRC) in the EU have been largely unchanged over the past week because market activity has been slow, sources told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday March 7."The majority of buyers have booked the volumes they needed and now prefer to wait and see where the market will move," a German trader said.Northern EuropeMetal Bulletin's weekly price assessment...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) in the EU have been largely stable over the past week, with buyers remaining in "wait-and-see" mode, sources have told Metal Bulletin.European mills have been offering June-production HRC but buyers have held back from booking significant volumes until the market trend becomes clear for the third quarter of the year.In addition, end-users have not fully tr...Read More
Domestic prices for heavy steel plate in Southern Europe have increased over the past week, reflecting rising slab costs, sources told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday March 7.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for domestic grade-S235JR heavy steel plate in Southern Europe was ?,?580-590 ($718-730) per tonne ex-works on Wednesday, up by ?,?10 per tonne week-on-week.The assessment reflected "worka...Read More
European steel association Eurofer supports the plan announced by the European Commission (EC) to counter the trade sanctions to be introduced by the United States under its Section 232 rules.The EU is ready to react proportionately and fully, in line with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, if the US measures are formalized and are seen to affect the EU's economic interests, the EC said.US Pres...Read More
Prices for domestic mesh-quality wire rod produced and delivered in Europe remained flat this week, with the market being underpinned by healthy lead times, sources said."Stocks are low, there is not much material around and the 'good' season is coming," one Southern European mill source said on Wednesday March 7.A Northern European producer source agreed, adding that his mill was...Read More
Prices for rebar produced and delivered in Southern Europe narrowed upward by ?,?15 ($19) per tonne this week amid higher scrap costs and milder weather conditions across the continent, sources told Metal Bulletin."All of the mills in Spain are pushing up their prices. Raw materials [costs] are up and I believe that scrap [prices] will bounce again. I think the market will keep rising," one Southe...Read More
Turkish steel mills have booked more deep-sea scrap for April, with prices rising slightly on strong demand for rebar and billet in the domestic market, sources told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday March 7."Steel mills have already sold a number of billet cargoes to the domestic market at around $585-590 per tonne ex-works," a Turkish source said."Rebar demand in the domestic market is also strong, [s...Read More
Iron ore prices fell further on Wednesday March 7 after a seaborne cargo changed hands at a lower price. Metal Bulletin's 62% Fe Iron Ore Index Today: $75.84 per tonne cfr QingdaoDaily change: down by $0.23 per tonneMonth-to-date average: $77.33 per tonneMetal Bulletin's 58% Fe Premium Index Today: $60.33 per tonne cfr QingdaoDaily change: down by $0.23 per tonneMonth-to-date average: $61.08 per.....Read More
Iron ore prices fell further on Wednesday March 7 with a cargo of seaborne materials changing hands below $75 per tonne cfr China.Key driversChina's ferrous futures tumbled across the board during the day, with the benchmark contracts shedding 0.5-2.4% of their values compared with the settlement prices on Tuesday.The country's spot rebar and hot-rolled coil prices also fell 20-50 yuan ($3.20-7.90...Read More