Gold has big year in 2020 and outlook for this year robust. Learn about monetary expansion and gold future prices.Read More
The gold futures price reached US$1,767/ounce this week before retreating, which was the second time it has surpassed US$1,760 in the past two months, marking some of gold's highest levels in several years.Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday November 25 that are worth another look.Russian steelmaker Metalloinvest, which is the largest global supplier of hot-briquetted iron (HBI), may increase its shipments of the material by 10% by early 2023.Global copper scrap metal suppliers are now hesitant to...Read More
The London Metal Exchange three-month copper price continued its quest for record numbers on Wednesday November 24,while zinc suffered a dip in fortunes.Copper came closer to its June 2018 high of $7,304 when it reached $7,300 at the 5pm close, a rise of 0.09% from Tuesday's closing price of $7,293. During morning trading on Wednesday, however, copper's three-month price had already surpassed...Read More
A high nickel price, among other factors, has subdued the nickel briquette premium in the United States while nickel premiums in China and Europe hold steady amid scant spot trade, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday November 24.Low producer offers reportedly sent US briquette premiums down againChinese premiums steady with a lack of trading activity Thin trading leaves European premiums unmoved a...Read More
Spot lead premiums rose in the United States this week while lead premiums are coming under pressure in India following a surge in the commodity price, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday November 24. London Metal Exchange on-warrant zinc stock in Singapore sheds dropped by 6,900 tonnes from a week ago to 67,525 tonnes on November 24. Overall "live" stock is down by 7,550 tonnes in the past one we...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Europe moved up again in the week to Wednesday November 25, due to a materials shortage, sources have told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets calculated its daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe, at ?,?550.45 ($653.19) per tonne on Wednesday, up by ?,?5.40 per tonne day on day from ?,?545.05 per tonne on Tuesday.The index was up by ?,?12.53 pe...Read More
The price for steel H-beams in Europe moved up this week when producers' ambitions for price increases were supported by a recent rise in feedstock costs, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday November 25.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel beams, domestic, delivered Northern Europe, was ?,?550-580 ($653-688) per tonne on Wednesday, up from ?,?550-570 per tonne one week before.A more re...Read More
The US government rejected a permit application for Northern Dynasty's Pebble Mine on Wednesday November 25, a move which it was said would probably scuttle the controversial project in Alaska.The US Army Corps of Engineers said that it "determined that the applicant's plan for the discharge of fill material does not comply with Clean Water Act guidelines, and concluded that the proposed project.....Read More
RAPAPORT... Human Rights Watch (HRW) has called for mandatory sourcing rules for the jewelry industry and urged retailers to name their suppliers, claiming the sector is not doing enough to combat abuses."Many jewelry companies have made progress in sourcing their gold and diamonds responsibly, but consumers still don't have adequate assurances that their jewelry comes free of human-rights ab...Read More
RAPAPORT... Chow Tai Fook saw earnings grow in the first fiscal half amid surging gold prices and a recovery in the Chinese market.Profit jumped 45% year on year to HKD 2.29 billion ($296 million) for the six months ending September 30, even as sales fell, the Hong Kong-based jeweler said Tuesday. The retailer attributed the rise to the profitability of its mainland China operations, as well as th...Read More
Canada's Hudbay Minerals has resumed full production at its 777 copper-zinc mine at Flin Flon, Manitoba, the company said on Wednesday November 25. Operations were halted in early October after a skip-hoist incident damaged the mineshaft. No one was injured in the incident on October 9 and Hudbay temporarily reassigned staff to its Lalor mine, near Snow Lake, more than 200 ...Read More
RAPAPORT... Online US retail sales will surpass in-store purchases on Black Friday for the first time as shoppers look to avoid crowds, according to a survey from Deloitte.Some 74% of respondents intend to go fully digital over the Thursday-to-Monday Thanksgiving period, amid concerns over the increasing number of Covid-19 cases, the consulting firm noted Monday in its Pre-Thanksgiving Pulse Surve...Read More
RAPAPORT... De Beers has purchased five rough blue diamonds from Petra Diamonds for more than $40 million in partnership with one of its sightholders.The miner bought the Letlapa Tala collection together with South African wholesaler and manufacturer Diacore for $40.4 million, split equally between the two companies. The type IIb stones, which originated from Petra's Cullinan mine in South Africa,...Read More
A high nickel price, among other factors, has subdued the nickel briquette premium in the United States while nickel premiums in China and Europe hold steady amid scant spot trade, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday November 24.Low producer offers reportedly sent US briquette premiums down againChinese premiums steady with a lack of trading activity Thin trading leaves European premiums unmoved a...Read More
Aluminium producer Norsk Hydro's Husnes plant in Norway is on its way back to full production for the first time in more than 10 years, after production resumed at the Husnes B line on Tuesday November 24.Hydro Husnes produces about 95,000 tonnes per year of aluminium via the A line. This will gradually increase to around 195,000 tpy with the 200 electrolysis cells in the one-kilometer-long B line...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A research team based in Australia has successfully produced diamonds for the first time at room temperature.Lab-grown diamonds require high pressure and temperatures of 800C, but scientists say they have created diamonds in the lab with no heat, and in a matter of minutes. The manufacturing method mimics the violent impact of meteorites on Earth, which is known to have create...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Five blue diamonds weighing a total 85.6 carats has been sold to to a partnership between De Beers and Diacore for just over $40m.The Letlapa Tala Collection, from Petra's iconic Cullinan mine, in South Africa, were offered at a competitive tender.The miner said it was the first time five rough blue diamonds of significant size, colour and clarity had been offered for sale at...Read More
Spot lead premiums rose in the United States this week while lead premiums are coming under pressure in India following a surge in the commodity price, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday November 24. London Metal Exchange on-warrant zinc stock in Singapore sheds dropped by 6,900 tonnes from a week ago to 67,525 tonnes on November 24. Overall "live" stock is down by 7,550 tonnes in the past one we...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States have remained broadly steady ahead of the national Thanksgiving holiday, although market participants anticipated further increases given recent mill announcements and supply concerns headed into 2021.Fastmarkets daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $39 per hundredweight ($780 per short ton) on Wednesday November 25, nearly fl...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Customs officers seized more than $20m of designer jewelry being smuggled through one of the busiest border points between Canada and the USA.It was undeclared and unmanifested, said US Customs and Border Protection officers based at the Detroit Windsor Tunnel.The jewelry, valued at $20.7m, was destined for a New York auction house, where it was to be appraised and eventually sold...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Tiffany & Co reported a 52 per cent increase in Q3 net earnings to $119m, proving it could weather the Covid storm, and that it could defy LVMH claims that it had been mismanaged during the pandemic.Sales in China soared by 70 per cent and e-commerce doubled to 12 per cent of total net sales.Total worldwide net sales returned to the billion dollar level, down just one per...Read More