Financialmarkets have become a complete joke. From GameStop to Dogecoin to non-fungible tokens(NFTs), a plethora of assets have been pushed to laughable heights with thehelp of the Federal Reserve’s funny money.Justabout everyone, except for stone-faced Fed officials, seems to be in on thejoke.Dogecoinpromoter and billionaire Tesla founder Elon Musk poked fun at cryptocurrencies and the U.S....Read More

 Easy choices lead to a hard life (or atleast losses), and because gold’s downside move is delayed, it’s extremely easyto be bullish on gold right now.It’s easy to get carried away by theday-to-day price action, and it’s even easier to feel the emotions that othermarket participants are feeling while looking at the same short-term priceaction. Right now, it’s tem...Read More

In the first portion of this research article, I highlighted the correlation between Gold and the US Dollar as well as the correlation between the US Dollar and the EURUSD and JPYUSD.  The purpose of this example was to highlight the different phases of US Dollar appreciation vs depreciation compared to the EURUSD/JPYUSD.  The EURUSD and JPYUSD are often compared to the US Dollar as majo...Read More

Although Gold has continued to drift downward after reaching a peak near $2089.20 in early August 2020, our Custom Gold Inverse Trending Index suggests this weakness has actually built a very strong momentum base – preparing for a big move higher.The relationship of Gold to the US Dollar is a fairly widely known correlation.  When the US Dollar is weaker, Gold tends to rally.  When...Read More

The United States' pig iron import market increased again during the week to Friday May 21 on improved workable price level for buyers, but high offers fromsuppliers in the Commonwealth of Independent States have not yet been accepted. Fastmarkets' price assessment for pig iron, import, cfr Gulf of Mexico, US, was at $650-670 per tonne on Friday, up by 2.33% from $640-650 per tonne the previous we...Read More

Import prices for flat-rolled steel had no clear trend in South America during the week ended Friday May 21 amid lower Chinese offers and buyers accepting higher prices from other origins, market participants said.Fastmarkets' assessment for steel plate import, cfr main ports South America, was $1,100-1,140 per tonne on Friday, up by $60-100 from $1,000-1,080 per tonne a week earlier.While some Ch...Read More

Turkish steel scrap import prices have so far held firm despite a sharp drop in China's steel and scrap markets this week.Soaring billet and rebar prices in Asia were factors in allowing Turkish import scrap prices to rise earlier this month, but despite a large downturn in many Asian ferrous markets this week - including China and Taiwan - Turkish scrap prices have so far been undeterred. Turkey...Read More

An overview of the aerospace materials markets and the latest price moves.Ewa Manthey and Michael Greenfield in...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Thursday May 20 that are worth another look.The iron ore market price has broken several records in 2021, with sky high prices for various iron-ore brands emerging even before the half-year mark - such as the iron ore 62% Fe index surpassing $200 per...Read More

Japan's third-quarter aluminium quarterly benchmark looks likely to cross another six-year high after offers were heard at $180-190 per tonne earlier this week, primarily supported by the open Chinese arbitrage window.The arbitrage window to ship aluminium to China has been widening since it opened on April 29, with Chinese importers standing to gain a profit of $63.59 per tonne on May 20 for ever...Read More

Production cuts recently announced by world-leading silicon supplier Ferroglobe as part of it restructuring plan have triggered supply concerns among some market participants, with consumers increasingly eyeing China to meet demand needs."The supply in Europe going to be very tight," an industry source told Fastmarkets. "With all the production cuts, good levels of demand and lack of new projects...Read More

The battery-grade lithium hydroxide price in the seaborne Asian market has been mostly at parity with its peer in the domestic Chinese market during May, with the former closely tracking the latter amid overall tight spot availability in the region. Fastmarkets' price assessment of the lithium hydroxide monohydrate 56.5% LiOH.H2O min, battery grade, spot price cif China, Japan & Korea edged h...Read More

"The Perth Mint completely refutes any claim that it is running a "fractional reserve" bullion storage program..."(by Half Dollar) Numbers.There's this funny thing about numbers, you know, and anybody who has ever seen first hand that "war is racket" understands this.That said, for some reason, everybody puts faith in the numbers.America has over 8,000 tons of gold?Check.Sovereign mint balance she...Read More

London Metal Exchange base metals prices sold off in end-of-week trading on Friday May 21, with copper, nickel and aluminium closing at their lowest levels since April. Three-month copper futures closed at $9,881.50 per tonne at 5pm, down $166.50 (1.7%) against yesterday's close. Importantly, the red metal finished the week below the symbolic $10,000 per tonne, coming as the physical market for re...Read More

Deliverable stocks for most base metals - bar lead - in Shanghai Futures Exchange-registered warehouse fell in the week to Friday May 21, with tin recording the highest decrease in percentage terms. Tin stocks totaled 6,024 tonnes this week, down by 943 tonnes (13.5%) from 6,967 tonnes a week before. The largest outflow was from 830 Huangpu warehouse in Guangdong province, where volumes were down...Read More

Iron ore prices plunged on Friday May 21 amid thin liquidity on both the seaborne front and at the Chinese ports, sources said.Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $200.72 per tonne, down $11.13 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $203.06 per tonne, down $11.01 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $172.75 per tonne, down $8.06 per tonne65% Fe Brazil...Read More

Diamond market seasonally slow. US and China retail recovery driving demand. Multi-channel offerings stimulating growth as consumers return to stores. Polished inventory declining due to India supply constraints. Shortages supporting prices. Rough market stable after smaller De Beers May sight valued at $380M. Alrosa 1Q revenue +44% to $1.2B, profit up nearly eightfold to $326M. Hong Kong 1Q polis...Read More

RAPAPORT... GGTL Laboratories has identified a necklace containing 50 large synthetic rubies, which a client submitted after being told the stones were natural.The buyer sent the piece to the Liechtenstein-based lab with a request to identify the country of origin, as well as any treatments to the stones, GGTL said last week.The rubies appeared to be of high quality, with a deep, saturated color,...Read More

RAPAPORT... Jewelry was one of the top-selling categories at Macy's during the first fiscal quarter amid an influx of new, younger customers seeking luxury products."We had very strong results with new customers," Macy's CEO Jeff Gennette said Wednesday in an earnings call transcribed by Seeking Alpha. "Fragrances, women's shoes, big ticket, fine jewelry [and] men's clothing are all kind of on-ram...Read More

RAPAPORT... An 8.21-carat diamond ring was the top seller at the Bonhams New York Jewels sale, garnering $500,313, nearly double its high estimate.The piece, set with an oval-shaped modified brilliant-cut, D-color, VS1-clarity diamond, was designed in 1910. It was the star of the May 19 auction, which brought in a total of $3.7 million, Bonhams said Wednesday."[The ring] was the final lot in today...Read More