Trading activity for seaborne hard coking coal picked up this week, with Chinese market participants flagging interest for low-ash, low-sulfur materials. Tier-two cargoes were heard to have changed hands at around $182-185 per tonne fob Australia this week, market participants told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday January 17. "The pick-up in the trading of second-tier materials is along expected lines...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices retreated on Wednesday January 17, as end-users took a cautious approach to procurement amid narrowing marginsMetal Bulletin's 62% Fe Iron Ore IndexToday: $74.51 per tonne cfr QingdaoDaily change: Down by $1.20 per tonneMonth-to-date average: $76.79 per tonneMetal Bulletin's 58% Fe Premium IndexToday: $61.47 per tonne...Read More
Prices for physical iron ore retreated further on Wednesday January 17 amid concerns of a weakening Chinese steel market, and along with them, margins.Key driversPrices for both seaborne iron ore and port materials declined, tracking the general downtrend in the paper market for most of the day, though the benchmark contract for iron ore picked up just before the close of the trading session.China...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were little changed during morning trading on Wednesday January 17, with prices looking to consolidate after Tuesday's sell off. The three-month aluminium price came under pressure yesterday, closing down 2%. But they have edged $2 higher this morning. "Aluminium came under additional selling pressure after reports that the production hub of Xinjiang...Read More
Key data from Metal Bulletin's Wednesday January 17 pricing session in Europe.Gallium Metal MB free market $/kg Key drivers:- Escalating Chinese prices have driven European prices higher.- There is a lack of supply in the market.Key quotes:"Domestic Chinese prices...Read More
An overview of the minor metals markets and the reasons for any price moves.Read More
Chinese cobalt sulfate consumers have reduced their procurement of material following the new year holiday and while waiting for clearance on the government's 2018 subsidy policy on electric vehicles (EVs).The final subsidy policy on EV sales for 2018 is expected at the end of January, which is when it has been announced in recent years. Speculation over the new policy, however, has meant buyers h...Read More
Stainless steel prices are expected to weaken in Asia on lower demand during the first quarter of this year, while prices in Europe and North America are likely to continue to be supported by strong demand.Asia to see price dropAsian stainless steel prices are expected to drop in the January-March quarter amid soft demand.In the first quarter, China and some other major Asian stainless steel marke...Read More
The following Metal Bulletin UK non-ferrous scrap and foundry ingot prices changed on Wednesday January 17:Aluminium scrap Group 1 pure 99% & litho: ?1,420-1,470 per tonne from...Read More
Taiwan's ferrous scrap imports tumbled 29% year on year in November, according to the territory's customs agency.The island imported 172,320 tonnes of ferrous scrap that month, 70,354 tonnes lower than the 242,674 tonnes it took in a year earlier, data...Read More
* Australian shares hit more than four-week low* Soft commodity prices weigh down material and energy sectors* Consumer staples drive New Zealand shares higher By Christina MartinJan 17 (Reuters) - Australian shares slumped to their lowest in more than four weeks on Wednesday, on track for a second straight session of losses, as weak base metal prices hit materials stocks, dragging down the inde...Read More
By Jonathan StempelNEW YORK, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Rio Tinto Plc on Tuesday said a U.S. regulator's lawsuit accusing the big Anglo-Australian mining company of fraud for overstating the value of Mozambique coal assets it had bought in 2011 should be dismissed.In a letter filed with the U.S. District Court in Manhattan, a lawyer for Rio Tinto said the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission failed to...Read More
Gold pricing continues its historic climb to higher prices, gaining yet more value in today's trading. As of 4:30 PM Eastern standard time, gold futures are trading $4.10 (+0.31%) higher at $1339. Gold continues to ride the tailwinds created from a tumbling U.S. dollar, which is currently off by over a half percent today as it broke below the major support level of 91 on the dollar index. Our tech...Read More
(Adds background on mine outage, manganese forecast)Jan 17 (Reuters) - Mining group South32 Ltd said on Wednesday its second-quarter metallurgical coal output dropped 43 percent due to an outage at its Appin mine in Australia, while raising its full-year output forecast for South African manganese operations.Production of coal used in steelmaking fell to 788,000 tonnes in the December quarter fro...Read More
(Kitco News) - Silver remains an overlooked asset, but in 2018 things could change, as prices are projected to rise based on recovering industrial and investor demand, according to HSBC’s latest silver outlook.“We expect silver to move moderately higher in 2018 and 2019 based on strong industrial demand and limited supply,” said James Steel, chief precious metals analyst at HSBC....Read More
(Kitco News) - Gold prices ended the U.S. day session with modest gains Tuesday and scored a four-month high in overnight action. Meantime, silver prices were slightly up and hit a two-month high overnight. The precious metals markets are being supported by a plunging U.S. dollar index and a soaring Euro currency. February Comex gold was last up $2.40 an ounce at $1,337.40. March Comex silver was...Read More
(Kitco News) - After an impressive run in 2017, the World Gold Council sees four factors that will continue to push gold prices higher in the new year.In a report released Tuesday, the WGC said that increased market volatility, a rotation into defensive assets, a growing global middle class and growing market transparency are all bullish factors that will help drive gold prices higher, after endin...Read More
(Kitco News) - Gold will be going higher in 2018, even with the Federal Reserve continuing to tighten its monetary policy, TD Securities said in a report.“Softening USD, inflation and geopolitical risks drive gold into $1,340s territory, lift precious complex— correction in gold not in the cards even as Fed tightens,” said Bart Melek, head of commodity strategy at TD Securities.M...Read More
(Kitco News) - Mining companies struggling to attract investor capital need to start thinking outside the box and pay more attention to their environmental footprint, according to one tech mining executive. Kurtis Vanwallegham, CEO of Bio-Mine at #DisruptMining 2017 In an interview with Kitco News, Kurtis Vanwallegham, CEO of Bio-Mine, said that mining companies are starting to really focus on...Read More
Rio Tinto's shipment volumes of third-party bauxite rose by 10% year-on-year in 2017 to 32.3 million tonnes.The company's fourth-quarter results revealed that total bauxite production rose by 6% to 50.8 million tonnes in 2017, in line with the full-year guidance assessment.Brazilian bauxite prices rose by 5.6% between March and December 2017, when Metal Bulletin began...Read More