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

The good news for the miners: I'm predicting that the ascension of Janet Yellen to the US TreasuryContinue...Read More

Export prices for steel billet and slab from Iran continued to decrease in the week ended Wednesday January 27, following the global downtrend.Fresh billet contracts were signed within the range of $532-540 per tonne fob southern ports of Iran, against $549-565 per tonne fob a week earlier.One of the country's major billet exporters sold 30,000 tonnes to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region a...Read More

An overview of the specialty steel raw materials markets in Europe and their latest price moves.Charlotte Radford, Cristina Belda...Read More

Ferro-chrome prices in China's domestic and import markets soared again in the week to Tuesday January 26, due to restricted production in the north of the country and a leap in tender values.On January 21, Taiyuan Iron & Steel (Tisco) set its tender price for February-delivery high-carbon ferro-chrome at 8,000 yuan ($1,235) per tonne, up by 2,200 yuan per tonne (38%) from 5,800 yuan per tonne off...Read More

Prices for steel hollow sections in Europe moved upward this week, even as feedstock costs begin to fall, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday January 27.Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel sections (medium), domestic, delivered Northern Europe, was ?,?850-870 ($1,032-1,057) per tonne on Wednesday, up from ?,?820-850 per tonne one week earlier.In recent weeks, the price of the feedstock mater...Read More

Inflation will be one of the greatest upside risks for gold this year. Will it materialize and make gold shine?The report about gold in 2021 would be incomplete without the outlook for inflation . We have already written about it recently, but this topic is worth further examination. After all, higher inflation is believed to be one of the biggest tail risks in the coming months or years, and one...Read More

A dozen EU member states have called on the European Commission to extend the safeguard measures on steel imports that are due to expire on June 30 this year, according to a letter seen by Fastmarkets on Tuesday January 26.The letter, dated January 14,  was signed by the governments of 12 countries: Italy, Germany, France, Slovakia, Luxembourg, Finland, Hungary, Poland, Spain, the Czech...Read More

Liberty Steel Group has completed "due diligence" on Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe and submitted a "firmed up" bid for its acquisition based on the results, the UK-based steel company told Fastmarkets on Monday January 25."On Monday January 25, 2021, Liberty Steel submitted a firmed-up bid for Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe based on the results of the comprehensive due diligence process including multiple...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday January 27 that are worth another look.Global crude steel output fell by 0.9% year on year to 1.86 billion tonnes in 2020, with an increase in China unable to offset declines across most other major steelmaking nations, the World Steel Association...Read More

A summary of London Metal Exchange warrant premiums from across the globe for the week to Wednesday January 27.Please click...Read More

Nickel briquette premiums in Shanghai and the United States rose in the week to Tuesday January 26, with domestic demand in both regions markedly improving. European premiums remained static, but buying interest was also notably better. Improved arbitrage, demand support Shanghai briquette premiumReduced supply, higher offers bolster US briquettesEuropean sellers look to improving spot market amid...Read More

European buyers of hot-rolled coil have been holding back from making new deals due to the risks related to restocking ahead of an expected price decrease, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday January 27.Fastmarkets calculated its daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe, at ?,?708.75 ($860.82) per tonne on Wednesday, down by ?,?2.25 per tonne from ?,?711.00 per tonne on J...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday January 27 that are worth another look.Global crude steel output fell by 0.9% year on year to 1.86 billion tonnes in 2020, with an increase in China unable to offset declines across most other major steelmaking nations, the World Steel Association...Read More

A differentiated fee structure designed to drive member-to-member trade away from the telephone market is being proposed by the London Metal Exchange as part of its discussion paper. The goal is to incentivize trade on the exchange's electronic trading platform, LMESelect, and is proposed to be achieved by cutting fees to trade electronically while raising fees for the telephone market by around 5...Read More

Covid-19 appears to have claimed another casualty: the London Metal Exchange ring trading floor. The closure of the floor, now entering its 144th year, has been proposed in a discussion paper issued by the exchange earlier on Tuesday January 19.The open outcry floor may be old, but it didn't appear to have serious underlying health issues. It has successfully fought back against talk it was set to...Read More

Somebody just SHUT DOWN Wall Street Bets on Reddit, and the First Majestic Silver shorts, can you say, "RIP YOUR FACE OFF"!!!!!*****Begin Update 3 (Weds, Jan 27, 7:10ish p.m. EST):My, oh my, oh my!The freakin' Reddit Mods SHUT DOWN Wall Street Bets!Wow:Silver Bugs, Stackers, and other Smart Investors, Family, friends, haters and trolls, understand this saying very, very clearly: "If you don't hold...Read More

Where do silver and the economy look to be heading, from a technical view?Patrick Karim interviewed by by Patrick V. via SBTVPatrick Karim: Silver's Mega Cup and Handle Move Since the 1980s Begging to be FulfilledWe are joined on Metal Money by Patrick Karim, veteran chart trader and founder of Badcharts.com. The chart pattern that excites Patrick most has been the multi-decade cup and handle move...Read More

Zinc and copper's forward prices shrunk over 2% on the afternoon of Wednesday January 27 on the London Metal Exchange, with anxiety over the Covid-19 situation around the world expanding and the dollar rising ahead of Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell's remarks this evening. Zinc's three-month price fell for a fourth day in a row on Wednesday to $2,583.50 per tonne. The galvanizing metal's pr...Read More

Sentiment in the seaborne iron ore market improved on Wednesday January 27 because of an uptick in prices for steel products, sources told Fastmarkets. Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $166.59 per tonne, up $1.52 per tonne 62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $166.65 per tonne, up $0.46 per tonne 58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $152.22 per tonne, down $0.92 p...Read More

The seaborne premium coking coal fob price jumped on Wednesday January 27 following two transactions done at over $150 per tonne fob Australia due to weather concerns, market sources said.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $155.10 per tonne, up $4.89 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $217.24 per tonne, up $0.08 per tonneHard coking coal, fob DBCT: $124.74 per ton...Read More