The European markets for both high- and low-carbon ferro-chrome, delivered, softened in the week ended Friday June 26 in response to weak consumption.Both consumers and producers of ferro-chrome said that they would be reducing their outputs by more than usual during the summer slowdown in 2020, in response to the low economic activity.Fastmarkets' weekly assessment of the price for ferro-chrome,...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Tuesday June 30 that are worth another look.The definitive decision in the European steel safeguard case review failed to adjust the level of quotas to collapsed demand following Covid-19 crisis and is a "deep disappointment," European steel association Eurofer and European trade union IndustriAll said in a joint statement on June 30.Chine...Read More

The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.In previous reports, we noted that upside risks to our forecasts existed. These were based on Chinese steel production, and in turn alloy consumption, outperforming our expectations.Chinese crude steel production is rising each month in a year-on-year comparison, prompting our revised view that Chinese alloy consumption will...Read More

Turkish steel producers continued to stay away from deep-sea scrap purchases in anticipation of lower prices, sources said on Tuesday June 30.Mills in the country booked only two deep-sea cargoes last week, totaling 67,500 tonnes. This was mainly because of weak finished long steel markets and falling prices, according to sources.Turkish...Read More

Chinese non-ferrous scrap importers largely stayed on the sidelines during June, with a lack of detail surrounding China's renaming of certain scrap metal as renewable materials causing participants to refrain from making any purchases. "Today is the last day of June and nothing new on customs codes and inspection procedures has been released from Chinese customs yet," an industry source said. The...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Tuesday June 30 that are worth another look.The definitive decision in the European steel safeguard case review failed to adjust the level of quotas to collapsed demand following Covid-19 crisis and is a "deep disappointment," European steel association Eurofer and European trade union IndustriAll said in a joint statement on June 30.Chine...Read More

Solgold is set to take 100% control of its Ecuador copper-gold mine named Alpala, with the latest buy-out attempt from a company that holds a minority stake in the project, Fastmarkets understands.Solgold commenced an offer to buy all shares of Cornerstone Capital Resources, which holds a 15% stake in the Alpala project, Solgold said on Tuesday June 30. Alpala, located in the...Read More

Asian-Pacific equities and pre-market major western equity index futures were stronger this morning, Tuesday June 30, while base metals prices were for the most part firmer too - this despite Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell saying the US economy faces "extraordinary uncertainty". China's manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) climbed to 50.9 in June, from 50.3 in May, but Japan's in...Read More

Albert Camus opened his book The Stranger by writing:My mother died today. Or maybe yesterday, I don't know. I received a telegram from the old people's home: "Mother deceased. Funeral tomorrow. Very sincerely yours." That doesn't mean anything. It might have been yesterday.Camus was a Frenchmen with an absurdist philosophy that's akin to existentialism. The Stranger was first published in Nazi-oc...Read More

The cobalt alloy grade, in-whs Rotterdam trade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets. Fastmarkets publishes trade logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparency into the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies. Fastmarkets assessed cobalt alloy...Read More

The cobalt standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam trade log including business, bids and offers reported to Fastmarkets. Fastmarkets publishes trade logs for its key price assessments and indices to bring more transparency into the markets it covers and the pricing process it applies. Fastmarkets assessed cobalt standard...Read More

Today in the INK Market Report, we highlighted the bull market in Canadian junior mining stocks. While the North American economy may be challenged to put in a V-shaped recovery, Canada's Venture market appears to be succeeding with that letter of the alphabet. The S&P/TSX Venture Index jumped 5.6% last week and the Index is now up year-to-date. Money is clearly moving into the sector, pushing up...Read More

After market feedback, Fastmarkets MB is extending the consultation period for the proposed amendment to its cobalt hydroxide payable indicator and index. The two prices that would be affected by the amendment are: MB-CO-0021: Cobalt hydroxide payable indicator, min 30% Co, cif China, % payable of Fastmarkets' standard-grade cobalt price (low end)  MB-CO-0020: Cobalt hydroxide index...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Tuesday June 30 that are worth another look.The definitive decision in the European steel safeguard case review failed to adjust the level of quotas to collapsed demand following Covid-19 crisis and is a "deep disappointment," European steel association Eurofer and European trade union IndustriAll said in a joint statement on June 30.Chine...Read More

Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Northern Europe increased day on day on Tuesday June 30, despite the slow pace of demand recovery, sources have told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe, was calculated at ?,?396.88 ($446.38) per tonne on Tuesday, up by ?,?1.88 per tonne from ?,?395.00 per tonne on June 29.Tuesday's index was based on "wor...Read More

Hot-rolled coil import prices in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia have decreased this week while hot-dipped galvanized coil prices have widened upward, with demand better than in previous weeks, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday June 30.Some deals for hot-rolled coil (HRC) were heard from India to the UAE.UAEOffer prices for HRC from China were heard in the UAE at $470 per tonne cfr, bu...Read More

After dwindling throughout 2019, Turkish exports of reinforcing bar to the United States surged during the first half of 2020; Fastmarkets examines the domestic and global factors that limited those shipments - and drove their return.Turkish rebar exports to the US through the first six months of 2020 reached 231,569.9 tonnes, accounting for 44.4% of the total 521,002 tonnes of rebar shipped to US...Read More

The prices paid for steel rebar and billet in the United Arab Emirates were mostly stable this week but demand is still moderate, market sources said on Tuesday June 30.Some steel rebar import deals were heard from Oman during the week, with the price for rebar imports rising in the country, sources said.Domestic rebarLocal mills in the UAE were offering rebar at 1,770-1,774 dirhams ($482-483) per...Read More

The European Commission (EC) has toughened the existing safeguard measures on imports of steel products in the second review of the matter, it said on Tuesday June 30.The reviewed measures will come into force from July 1, 2020, and will remain in place for one year.The EC introduced two general adjustments to the quota system, intended to guarantee an orderly return to the market of all suppliers...Read More

Demand for physical delivery through the COMEX futures market continues, and this has significant implications for the future of the current fractional reserve and digital derivative pricing scheme.It's now mid-summer and the July COMEX contracts have moved into their delivery phase. The numbers are as amazing as they are historic, thus this updated summary is necessary today.Back in late March,...Read More