Base metals futures fell on the London Metal Exchange on Monday September 21, with the US markets reacting negatively to the forecast from that country's Federal Reserve bank (the Fed) that it will keep interest rates largely unchanged at low levels for the next three years.The price of zinc on the LME for delivery in three months' time closed at $2,458 per tonne at 5pm on Monday, down by 3.1% fro...Read More
Sentiment in the Northern European hot-rolled coil market remained upbeat on Monday September 21, driven by reduced output from domestic steelmakers and a lack of competitive import offers, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets calculated the daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe, at ?,?484.95 ($574.10) per tonne on Monday, down by ?,?1.97 per tonne from ?,?486.92 per ton...Read More
Global alumina prices are expected to remain rangebound over the next quarter unless there are significant changes to the supply and demand picture, Noranda chief operating officer Thomas Robb said. Speaking at Fastmarkets' International Aluminium Conference on Monday September 21, Robb said: "It feels like the market is somewhat rangebound because of the supply and demand dynamics we're seeing ou...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday September 21 that are worth another look.Brazilian steel and iron ore producer Companhia Sider??rgica Nacional (CSN) will launch an initial public offering (IPO) of its mining division stock to fund a $6-billion expansion plan that will increase capacity to 108...Read More
The Chinese steel engine that powered on for a good six months after the start of the Covid-19 pandemic is finally starting to lose steam, according to market sources.Booming domestic demand and equally strong local steel prices had been the savior of steelmakers everywhere in the second and most of the third quarter of 2020, which either indirectly improved sentiment in Asia or opened arbitrage w...Read More
Base metals futures fell on the London Metal Exchange on Monday September 21, with the US markets reacting negatively to the forecast from that country's Federal Reserve bank (the Fed) that it will keep interest rates largely unchanged at low levels for the next three years.The price of zinc on the LME for delivery in three months' time closed at $2,458 per tonne at 5pm on Monday, down by 3.1% fro...Read More
Bearish supply fundamentals and a high London Metal Exchange three-month price continue to spark debate in the nickel market, but while Citi maintains that the much-lauded electric vehicle (EV) metal is its least-preferred for medium-term investment, a quick turnaround in Chinese economic recovery is providing green shoots for physical demand, analyst Oliver Nugent told Fastmarkets. "We can't help...Read More
If the U.S. Government comes out with a new stimulus plan, then we are going to see higher silver and gold prices. However, if there isn't a new bill... by Steve St Angelo of SRSrocco ReportIn my newest update, I explain that the silver price trend for the next quarter will depend on what happens over the next 7-10 days. If the U.S. Government comes out with a new stimulus plan, then we are g...Read More
The seaborne premium hard coking coal fob index jumped on Monday September 21 due to bullish sentiment in the market, with traders in China also being positive about the material's performance in the cfr market.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $128.79 per tonne, up by $5.84 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $135.84 per tonne, up by $1.43 per tonneHard coking co...Read More
RAPAPORT... VicenzaOro staged the first major international jewelry trade fair since before Covid-19 amid strict safety measures, with buyers booking modest orders.Attendance was well below pre-pandemic levels due to the absence of participants from the Americas and Asia at the Italian show, which took place on September 12 to 14. However, the mood was upbeat, as visitors to both the physical...Read More
Bearish supply fundamentals and a high London Metal Exchange three-month price continue to spark debate in the nickel market, but while Citi maintains that the much-lauded electric vehicle (EV) metal is its least-preferred for medium-term investment, a quick turnaround in Chinese economic recovery is providing green shoots for physical demand, analyst Oliver Nugent told Fastmarkets. "We can't help...Read More
RAPAPORT... Gem Diamonds has recovered an additional two large, high-quality diamonds from its Let??eng mine in Lesotho.An "exceptional" quality, 166-carat, type II diamond was unearthed last week, the same day the company found a yellow diamond weighing 77 carats, the miner said Monday. The 166-carat stone is the 12th over 100 carats Gem Diamonds has recovered this year.Earlier this month the min...Read More
RAPAPORT... Charles & Colvard, the producer of synthetic-moissanite jewelry, has launched a line of bridal and fashion pieces featuring lab-grown diamonds."There is a growing awareness of and demand for lab-created gems," Don O'Connell, the company's CEO, said last week. "We believe this addition will allow us to tap into the estimated $5.2 billion lab-created diamond opportunity, thus ca...Read More
Prices for flat steel products in Russia's Central Federal District around Moscow remained firm in the seven days to Monday September 21, supported by strong export prices, sources told Fastmarkets at the start of this week.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel hot-rolled sheet, domestic, cpt Moscow, Russia, was 42,000-43,000 roubles ($554-567) per tonne including 20% value-added tax on S...Read More
RAPAPORT... Alrosa has appointed Akil Zubir as managing director of its Belgium office, the miner said Thursday. He will succeed Sergey Panchekhin, who has worked for the company for more than 20 years and plans to retire in late October.Zubir, one of seven candidates, joined Alrosa in 2017 as head of its insurance department. During his tenure, the company settled a large insurance loss rela...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Jewelry professionals can now use their smartphone to take studio-quality photos and 360-degree videos of the items they're appraising.Instappraise, developers of cloud-based jewelry appraisal software is partnering with Picup Media, maker of the GemLightbox jewelry photography tool, to provide technology for appraisers to quickly and easily capture hi-res images to accompany...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Dominion Diamond Mines, which filed for insolvency in April, has sold its Ekati mine, in Canada after receiving a solitary bid.The buyers are part of The Washington Companies, a privately held conglomerate based in Montana, USA, that bought Dominion in 2017 for $1.2bn. Toronto-based Dominion, the world's third largest producer of rough diamonds by value, shut Ekati...Read More
RAPAPORT... Bonhams has promoted Leslie Roskind to lead its Hong Kong jewelry department, it said Monday.Roskind, who has been with Bonhams since April 2019, will oversee the procuring and selling of jewelry in the municipality, and will also liaise with the auction house's global jewelry team on various projects. "With her international expertise...we look forward to advancing our sourcing and bu...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Celebrity jeweler Joseph DuMouchelle, who twice auctioned the engagement ring given by Donald Trump to his second wife, has admitted masterminding a multi-million dollar gem fraud.He tricked a US businessman into investing $12m into a 77-carat diamond known as The Yellow Rose in 2019. DuMouchelle admitted via a videolink to the federal court that he withdrew most of the money...Read More
New Day Aluminum is evaluating investment opportunities in the aluminium and specialty chemicals businesses in Europe, the company's chairman and chief executive officer said.During an interview on the bauxite and alumina day at Fastmarkets' International Aluminium conference, David D'Addario said that New Day has relocated chief operating officer Tom Robb to London to be in charge of the process....Read More