The domestic market for hot-rolled coil in Europe remained quiet on Monday November 8, with prices showing little change, sources told Fastmarkets.Producers were, however, looking to achieve higher prices for the first quarter of 2022 because of the surging costs for raw materials, transport and energy.Expected restocking activity at distributors was also supporting market sentiment. Notably, seve...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday November 8 that are worth another look.The United States is looking carefully at steel projects in Southeast Asia in which China has invested, after US trade representative Katherine Tai said that she supported updating US trade laws to combat the circumvention of...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday November 8 that are worth another look.The United States is looking carefully at steel projects in Southeast Asia in which China has invested, after US trade representative Katherine Tai said that she supported updating US trade laws to combat the circumvention of...Read More
Brazilian steel slab export prices remained stable in the week ended Friday November 5, with no fresh deals heard and negotiations for January shipments still proceeding at a slow pace.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel slab, export, fob main port Brazil, was $730-740 per tonne on Friday, unchanged from the previous week.The higher end of the assessment corresponded to prices in the...Read More
Aluminum producer Alcoa plans to restart some curtailed capacity at its Portland Aluminium joint venture in Victoria, Australia, with more production at the smelter set to come online in the third quarter of 2022, the company said on Sunday November 7.The process to restart the additional capacity, idled since 2009 and totaling 35,000 tonnes per year, will begin immediately, the United States-head...Read More
Key data from Fastmarkets' pricing session in Europe on Friday November 5.Key drivers?EUR?There were higher bids for gallium in the market but producers seemed reluctant to sell. Some producers declined bids that were higher than the current price, believing that the price would continue to rise.?EUR?The metal's price...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday November 8 that are worth another look.The United States is looking carefully at steel projects in Southeast Asia in which China has invested, after US trade representative Katherine Tai said that she supported updating US trade laws to combat the circumvention of...Read More
Modest gains were seen in base metals futures prices at the 5pm close of trading on the London Metal Exchange on Monday November 8 because of a weaker US Dollar Index, which supported price increases.Aluminium led the gains, its price increasing by almost 2% to $2,605.00 per tonne, up from $2,556.50 per tonne at Friday's 5pm close. This rise followed a 5% decline in the three-month price for the l...Read More
End-user demand for rebar in China's domestic market decreased on Monday November 8 on adverse weather, though prices picked up on rising futures. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 4,900-4,980 yuan ($766-778) per tonne, up by 20-70 yuan per tonneLarge parts of China have been experiencing a cold wave since last Friday, causing snow in the northern region and strong winds in the...Read More
The export market for steel slab from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) region was quiet in the week to Monday November 8.Mills mainly held back from placing new offers, preferring to assess the market conditions, so no fresh deals were heard done.Meanwhile, the situation in the global market was mixed.In Europe, plate producers, which are the main consumers of CIS-origin slab in the re...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mainly weaker on the morning of Monday November 8, but those on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mainly firmer as they followed the strength seen on the LME on Friday.US Congress' passing of the long-awaited infrastructure bill bodes well for the metals Chinese trade data show a record surplus, but weaker than expected imports highlight weaker...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil increased across the European Union during the week to Friday November 5, despite slow trading activity in the spot market.Despite the lack of trading, sentiment remains positive in anticipation of restocking by distributors, upward pressure on prices from high energy and transport costs, and because of the agreement reached between the United States and the EU...Read More
Key data from the Friday November 5 pricing session in Shanghai.Key drivers?EUR?Domestic prices for tellurium in China fell amid a slow spot market last week. Participants received very limited inquiries from the downstream thermoelectric cooler industry, according...Read More
China imported 91.61 million tonnes of iron ore in October 2021, down by 14% from 106.74 million tonnes one year earlier and 4% lower month on month - its fifth consecutive monthly decline, according to Chinese customs data released on Sunday November 7.In January-October, China imported a total of 934.6 million tonnes of iron ore, down by 4.2% from the corresponding period in 2020.Demand for...Read More
Turkish steel mills were quiet at the beginning of the week but are expected to book more deep-sea cargoes for December shipment, market participants told Fastmarkets on Monday November 8.The most recent deep-sea trade was recorded at the end of the last week, when a steel mill in the Izmir region booked a Baltic Sea cargo consisting of 11,000 tonnes of heavy melting scrap 1&2...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mainly weaker on the morning of Monday November 8, but those on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mainly firmer as they followed the strength seen on the LME on Friday.US Congress' passing of the long-awaited infrastructure bill bodes well for the metals Chinese trade data show a record surplus, but weaker than expected imports highlight weaker...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices were mostly stable on Monday November 8 amid continuing weak demand from Chinese steel mills, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $93.82 per tonne, up $0.68 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $94.55 per tonne, up $0.47 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $65.68 per tonne, down $0.10 per tonne65% Fe...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were down across the board on Tuesday November 9, but those on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mainly firmer while they followed the strength seen on the LME on Monday, when the complex closed up by an average of 1.2%.* While some of China’s data shows a struggling economy, recovery and infrastructure spending elsewhere bode well for metals d...Read More
Nickel pig iron (NPI) prices in China slid from an all-time high in the week to Friday November 5 in tandem with movements on exchanges, though tight supply amid power cuts in the country kept them supported.Fastmarkets' price assessment for nickel pig iron, high-grade NPI content 10-15%, spot, ddp China was at 1,490-1,510 yuan ($233-236) per nickel unit last Friday, narrowing downward by 10 yuan...Read More
Swiss packaging company Aluflexpack has achieved Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI) Performance Standard Certification at its Drni?? production site in Croatia, and also Chain of Custody (CoC) Standard Certification at both Drni?? and Einsiesdeln in Switzerland, it was announced on Monday November 8.The company provides "flexible packaging" solutions for a number of international brands across...Read More