RAPAPORT... What connects the engagements of actress Meghan Markle, model Emily Ratajkowski and singer Ariana Grande? One answer lies in the rings they received: All three featured fancy-cut diamonds. The UK's Prince Harry gave Markle a cushion-shaped center stone when he proposed in 2017, while Ratajkowski showed off both a princess and a pear cut in 2018. Grande's 2020 betrothal gift contai...Read More
Norwegian aluminium and renewable energy company Norsk Hydro is looking at ways to use less-clean scrap in low-carbon ingot production, according to chief executive officer Hilde Merete Aasheim.Aasheim was speaking to Fastmarkets in an exclusive interview on Tuesday October 26, after the company announced record third-quarter results for its aluminium business."For us, profitability and sustainabi...Read More
RAPAPORT... US holiday spending will "shatter" previous records as consumers dip into their sizable savings, the National Retail Federation (NRF) has forecast.Retail sales in November and December will advance 8.5% to 10.5% year on year, for a total of between $843.4 billion and $859 billion, the organization predicted Wednesday. The average increase over the past five years was 4.4%, while s...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The final tender of Argyle pink diamonds delivered the most significant "record breaking results" in the mine's 38-year history, Rio Tinto said yesterday.It declined to disclose prices paid for the 70 super-rare pink and red diamonds but said the 2021 collection "continued its trajectory of double digit price growth".The stones were bought by 19 bidders from nine countries. Am...Read More
RAPAPORT... Rio Tinto achieved record-breaking figures at its 2021 Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender, with prices strong amid dwindling supply from the mine.The Australian miner offered 70 rare pink and red diamonds at the last-ever edition of the tender, which follows Argyle's closure in November 2020. The "historical" collection, called The Journey Beyond, comprised the final diamonds mined durin...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Thieves targeting passengers on a train in India discarded diamonds worth over $11,000 as fakes, say police.The stole purses containing the valuables from two women traveling on the Howrah-Mumbai Gitanjali Express near Gondia, in Maharashtra state, according to The Times of India. "They melted the stolen gold ornaments and sold them to a goldsmith," investigation officer Pravi...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange rebounded during morning trading on Thursday October 28, with nickel and copper leading the pack higher.The three-month nickel price was recently at $19,735 per tonne, up by 1.7% from $19,412 per tonne at Wednesday's 5pm close. "Copper and nickel rebounded on Thursday as bargain hunters were attracted to the metals with possibly the tightest fundamen...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Petra saw revenue from its three South African mines rise by 48 per cent in the first fiscal quarter (Q1 FY 2022).It was boosted by the sale of three extremely high-value stones for over $50m - almost half its $114.9m total income for the three months.The London-based miner said it sold an exceptional 39.34-ct blue diamond (pictured) for $40.18m a 342.92-ct Type IIa white diamond f...Read More
PolarX finds extra copper potential in AlaskaSPONSOREDpolarxAzure eyes province potential ahead of Andover resourceSPONSOREDazure mineralsAmerican Pacific building US copper positionSPONSOREDamerican pacific miningExploration is a risky businessSPONSOREDmarimaca copperLast week's ‘From the Capital' column noted the extraordinary reluctance of industry promoters at the MiningNews.Read More
India-based Essar Steel has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Saudi Arabia's industry minister for the construction of a hot-rolled coil manufacturing unit, the Middle Eastern country's National Development Center (NDC) said on Wednesday October 27.Bandar Bin lbrahim Al-Khorayef, Saudi Arabia's minister for industry and mineral resources, and Rewant Ruia, representing Essar Steel, signed t...Read More
European prices for steel hot-rolled coil were broadly stable on Thursday October 28, with buyers and mills continuing to hold back from the market although sentiment was upbeat, sources told Fastmarkets.European producers were busy negotiating long-term contracts for 2022 with end-users and therefore were not providing firm offers to the spot market, sources said.Buyers expected producers to retu...Read More
Liberty Steel UK (LSUK) has restarted crude steel production at its Rotherham electric-arc furnace in north-east England, the company announced on Thursday October 28.The company will operate at night to maximize efficiency and mitigate the high energy costs that have become a key issue for the industry, it said. Some other producers have cut their output in response to the rising costs.LSUK claim...Read More
The price assessment for imported billet into Egypt decreased in the week to Thursday October 27, but local rebar prices widened upward on higher offers, sources told Fastmarkets.Local rebar producers increased their prices, effectiveOctober 20.Current offer prices for rebar range from E ?14,900 to15,350 ($946-975) per tonne ex-works including 14% VAT.Demand failed to improve in the country, howev...Read More
PolarX finds extra copper potential in AlaskaSPONSOREDpolarxAzure eyes province potential ahead of Andover resourceSPONSOREDazure mineralsAmerican Pacific building US copper positionSPONSOREDamerican pacific miningExploration is a risky businessSPONSOREDmarimaca copperAnnouncing its first climate change report late yesterday, Vale said it would invest between US$4-$6 billion in "technological solu...Read More
Prices for pig iron originating from the Black Sea basin continued to grow in late October, supported by limited availability of the material.Most producers continued to stay away from the market to better assess the situation. Some of their facilities were on maintenance.A supplier from Eastern Ukraine was said to have increased offers for its material to $550-560 per tonne fob, following last we...Read More
Prices for imports of basic pig iron into China have inched upward over the past fortnight, after transactions for Brazilian cargoes completed on October 15, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday October 28.Following those deals, however, buying activity started to slow down because sellers were offering cargoes at higher prices due to tight supply, market participants said.Around 120,000 tonnes of...Read More
Buy-side sentiment in key Asian steel scrap markets has been hurt by news that Chinese trading firms were offering Southeast Asian buyers steel billet which was already imported into China, together with recent falls in the scrap price in Turkey, sources said on Thursday October 28.?EUR?Easing bulk freight costs reduce Bangladesh deep-sea bulk scrap prices?EUR?China import demand muted after steel...Read More
A summary of Swedish state-owned iron-ore producer LKAB's financial results for the third quarter of 2021, ending September 30In brief LKAB continued to deliver historically high operating profits in July-September 2021 amid strong demand from steelmakers and high iron ore prices. Fastmarkets' iron ore index for 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao averaged at $163.39 per tonne in the third quarter of...Read More
The cfr-basis price for premium hard coking coal softened on news that China allowed stranded Australia-origin coal to clear customs on Thursday October 28, but prices in the seaborne fob market were strong on new trade.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $608.12 per tonne, down by $6.34 per tonneHard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $568.59 per tonne, unchangedPremium hard coking...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 14 points in pre-opening trade. Trading volume was relatively quiet this morning prior to release of annualized third quarter real GDP at 8:30 AM EDT. Consensus is growth at a 2.8% rate versus growth at a 6.7% in the second quarter. Ford added $1.36 to $16.87 after reporting higher than consensus third quarter results....Read More