Tungsten prices have climbed higher in both Europe and China in the past week on tightening availability of raw material ahead of the week-long national holiday in China beginning on February 15. China's tungsten prices rebound amid low availability European APT, ferro-tungsten prices increase on tightening raw material supply, currency fluctuations The approaching Chinese New Year is...Read More
Chinese ferro-silicon prices have edged down in line with tender purchase prices in the past week, with the European market easing amid reports of deals heard below the current range. China tracks lower tender purchase prices ...but supportive factors seen European price range eases US market firms while available supply thins Chinese domestic ferro-silicon prices were lower week on...Read More
Getting the right timeframe and adopting the correct investment planning approach are key differentiators between good and bad mining, according to Alcoa Corp's top executive. Companies have different approaches to mining, with some having very positive results and others relatively poor ones, Alcoa chief executive officer Roy Harvey said. "It gets back to how you think about those timescales invo...Read More
Shares in Australian zinc tailings processor New Century Resources halted trading on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) on Monday February 5, with the company set to announce offtake partners for the next three years of production.New Century has reduced the number of potential backers of the project to just a handful of international trading houses, several sources with knowledge of the matter s...Read More
Tightening supply in China pushed up chrome ore and domestic and imported charge chrome prices in the week to Friday February 2, while the European market dipped and the US price range widened. Tight supply, transport disruptions push up domestic Chinese ore and alloy marketsCharge chrome import prices jump on rand appreciationPrices edge up in JapanEuropean market slips amid thin tradingUS marke...Read More
Cobalt prices continued their steady ascent last week, while opportunities to pick up more cheaply-priced units ran thin. But slower spot activity ahead of the Chinese New Year holiday and buyers' reluctance to overstock at high prices served to limit the pace of the rally, market sources noted. Metal Bulletin assessed low-grade cobalt prices at $37.25-38.50 per lb, in-warehouse, on Friday Fe...Read More
Chinese silicon export prices rose again in the pricing session last week due to continuing dollar weakness and tightening spot availability. The weakening dollar has forced Chinese silicon exporters to frequently refresh their quotations in the past week to keep their order book balanced. The dollar index was recently at 89.07, down on Friday but up slightly from a low of 88.43 on January 25. Met...Read More
The Turkish scrap import market was still silent at the beginning of this week, with the country's steel mills still in negotiations with suppliers, sources said on Monday February 5.The steel producers in Turkey had returned to the deep-sea scrap market at the end of last week for three deep-sea cargoes from the United States and the UK.Two steel mills booked US cargoes at...Read More
South Africa urgently needs to get investment back on the agenda, according to the deputy chairman of Anglo American South Africa. Speaking during the annual Mining Indaba in Cape Town, Norman Mbazima said that while South Africa may have one of the world's most endowed mining jurisdictions, it has not been able to bring this endowment to account. "We need to attract capital for South Africa's min...Read More
Comex copper prices diverged from equity markets and returned to positive territory on Monday February 5, with the global environment remaining solid for the base metals group. Copper for March settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange gained 3.75 cents or 1.2% to $3.2250 per lb. The red metal dipped to a one-week low on Friday following a heavy selloff in equity markets...Read More
Base metals traded on the London Metal Exchange are off to a slightly negative start this week, posting an average loss of 0.4% this morning, Monday February 2. Nickel (-0.8%) is down the most, while tin (+0.3%) is the only base metal showing a gain.Volume has been fairly low with 4,947 lots traded as of 05.01 am London time.The downward pressure across the complex seems to be driven by a further...Read More
Demand for flat steel will remain moderate in Turkey in February and price increases are unlikely because raw material prices are falling and end-user demand is unremarkable, market participants told Metal Bulletin.Metal Bulletin assessed the price of hot-rolled coil (HRC) at $630-635 per tonne ex-works on Friday February 2, down at the high end from $630-640 per tonne in the previous assessment b...Read More
With the Chinese economy slowing down and steel margins being squeezed by higher raw materials costs and lower finished steel prices, the prospects for 2018 do not exactly look rosy.But pressures on the domestic housing market are easing and industrial growth is still above 6%, so with the Chinese New Year just around the corner, it's probably best to wait until after the celebrations to...Read More
Import prices for re-rolling-grade hot-rolled coil in Vietnam widened upward over the past week amid steady demand.Metal Bulletin's assessment of HRC import prices in Southeast Asia - which mainly looks at Chinese 2-3mm SAE1006 HRC and equivalent grades sold into Vietnam - was $585-595 per tonne cfr for the week ended Monday February 5, widening upward by $2 per tonne from a week earlier.Some 10,0...Read More
European apparent steel consumption is forecast to increase by 1.90% year-on-year in 2018 and by 1.40% year-on-year in 2019, European steel association Eurofer said at a seminar held in Brussels, Belgium, on Monday February 5.European steelmakers gained EU market share over the course of 2017, with import volumes falling in the second half of 2017. Steel imports held a 21% share of apparent steel...Read More
The latest bids, offers and deals in the global markets for rebar, wire rod, steel beams and other long steel products. Latest transactions: wire rod, rebarWire rodUkraine, export, wire rod, assessed at $580-595 per tonne fob Black Sea.Ukraine (ArcelorMittal Kryvyi...Read More
Finished steel prices in Russia will be reliant on moves in the global market and on how well the rouble holds up against the US dollar in 2018, Yuriy Tsybulko vice-president at Russia's biggest trading company, Metallservice, told Metal Bulletin. "The Russian [steel] market directly depends on the global market, which is why our domestic market will be [affected] by the situation in Chi...Read More
The Turkish scrap import market was still silent at the beginning of this week, with the country's steel mills still in negotiations with suppliers, sources said on Monday February 5.The steel producers in Turkey had returned to the deep-sea scrap market at the end of last week for three deep-sea cargoes from the United States and the UK.Two steel mills booked US cargoes at...Read More
With the Chinese economy slowing down and steel margins being squeezed by higher raw materials costs and lower finished steel prices, the prospects for 2018 do not exactly look rosy.But pressures on the domestic housing market are easing and industrial growth is still above 6%, so with the Chinese New Year just around the corner, it's probably best to wait until after the celebrations to...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices moved up on Monday February 5 amid gains in the futures market.Metal Bulletin's 62% Fe Iron Ore IndexToday: $75.70 per tonne cfr QingdaoDaily change: $1.31 per tonneMonth-to-date average: $74.32 per tonneMetal Bulletin's 58% Fe Premium IndexToday: $61.14 per tonneDaily change: Up by...Read More