Employees at the Kroondal chrome mine in South Africa have been informed the facility will not restart after lockdown measures are relaxed because of financial challenges in the market, according to a source close to the matter. Kroondal is part of the Glencore-Merafe Chrome Venture, in which Glencore has 79.5% stake. The mine near Rustenberg has a production capacity of 1 million tonnes per year,...Read More

Predictive is set to raise A$9.6 million by issuing 180 million new shares priced at 5c each. A month ago it scrounged together $612,000 by issuing 122 million new shares priced at 0.6c each.Read More

BPC said last week it had agreed a contract price of US$220/tonne with a consortium of Chinese buyers for potash to be supplied in 2020.Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Tuesday May 5 that are worth another look.US President Donald Trump is threatening to abandon a preliminary trade deal leading to an easing of trade tensions with China, citing the Covid-19 virus.Employees at the Kroondal chrome mine in South Africa have been informed the facility will not restart after lockdown measures are relaxed b...Read More

There will be a sell off if gold and silver fall today. Crude oil is bullish. There will be renewed short term hot money in crude oil (long positions) if crude oil rises till Thursday. Gold is somehow managing to float over $1700. Corrections up to $1650 will be a part of the bullish trend. Short term bearish trend will be there only if gold falls below $1650. Day traders and jobbers need to rem...Read More

The spread of the Covid-19 virus is causing disruption to immediate supply chains and future demand forecasts across the technology and consumer electronics sector. Since the outbreak gathered pace in January 2020, companies including Apple and Samsung have closed plants, shifted production, and in some cases, revised revenue forecasts. The far-reaching effects of the virus on the global economy a...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Tuesday May 5 that are worth another look.US President Donald Trump is threatening to abandon a preliminary trade deal leading to an easing of trade tensions with China, citing the Covid-19 virus.Employees at the Kroondal chrome mine in South Africa have been informed the facility will not restart after lockdown measures are relaxed b...Read More

Mexican scrap prices were stable or higher last week as low availability for some grades led to exceptional deals at increased prices, according to sources.Market participants reported that some scrap buyers had planned a 200 pesos ($8) price cut for last week, but by the end of the week such changes were not applied."In the whole month of April, buyers announced price cuts of around 1,000 pesos,...Read More

The Turkish deep-sea scrap import markets remained quiet with the mills seeking lower prices amid weak finished steel markets, sources said on Tuesday May 5.The most recent cargo deal was recorded on Friday May 1 when a steel mill in the Iskenderun region booked a European cargo comprising 17,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $236 per tonne cfr and 7,000 tonnes of bonus at $246 per tonne cfr, sendi...Read More

Broader markets are looking a bit brighter this morning, Tuesday May 5, with equity indices and base metals prices firmer while participants look forward to better demand once more plans are announced about lifting lockdown restrictions.The Dow Jones Industrial Average reversed from being down by 1.5% to close positively on Monday.US factory orders dropped by 10.3%, but this data was for March; by...Read More

The spread of the Covid-19 virus is causing disruption to immediate supply chains and future demand forecasts across the technology and consumer electronics sector. Since the outbreak gathered pace in January 2020, companies including Apple and Samsung have closed plants, shifted production, and in some cases, revised revenue forecasts. The far-reaching effects of the virus on the global economy a...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Tuesday May 5 that are worth another look.US President Donald Trump is threatening to abandon a preliminary trade deal leading to an easing of trade tensions with China, citing the Covid-19 virus.Employees at the Kroondal chrome mine in South Africa have been informed the facility will not restart after lockdown measures are relaxed b...Read More

Artificial intelligence (AI) just might be the most powerful technology ever invented. It will change every facet of life for good or evil. It will cure cancer, create geniuses, multiply productivity, save the environment, and backstop both freedom and democracy.Or perhaps it will usher in a surveillance state that robs us of our liberty and humanity and well as creating vast inequality. It could...Read More

Russia's largest steelmaker, Novolipetsk Steel (NLMK), which also runs assets in Europe and the United States, expects steel demand to show a double-digit drop in home markets in the second quarter of 2020 and for the full year, the company said on Thursday April 30."In Russia, we expect a double-digit decline in steel consumption in May and June, with potential recovery starting in July," chief e...Read More

Wall Financial (WFC) stock does not trade a lot, but it is a name worth watching if for no other reason than the window it provides into the Vancouver real estate market. After riding high for the past decade or so, Wall Financial is down 31.4% so far this year. Insiders are buying the pullback and INK Research puts that signal of optimism into its G versus D economy framework. Is VanRe feeling...Read More

The Egyptian parliament has this week requested the government add a 10% import duty on finished steel products to protect local steel production, Egyptian market sources told Fastmarkets.The government has not yet approved or rejected the proposal but, if accepted, flat steel producers will benefit from the new duties, sources said.Egypt already imposes a definitive safeguard duty of 16% of the c...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Tuesday May 5 that are worth another look.US President Donald Trump is threatening to abandon a preliminary trade deal leading to an easing of trade tensions with China, citing the Covid-19 virus.Employees at the Kroondal chrome mine in South Africa have been informed the facility will not restart after lockdown measures are relaxed b...Read More

Russia's largest steelmaker, Novolipetsk Steel (NLMK), which also runs assets in Europe and the United States, expects steel demand to show a double-digit drop in home markets in the second quarter of 2020 and for the full year, the company said on Thursday April 30."In Russia, we expect a double-digit decline in steel consumption in May and June, with potential recovery starting in July," chief e...Read More

The Egyptian parliament has this week requested the government add a 10% import duty on finished steel products to protect local steel production, Egyptian market sources told Fastmarkets.The government has not yet approved or rejected the proposal but, if accepted, flat steel producers will benefit from the new duties, sources said.Egypt already imposes a definitive safeguard duty of 16% of the c...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Tuesday May 5 that are worth another look.US President Donald Trump is threatening to abandon a preliminary trade deal leading to an easing of trade tensions with China, citing the Covid-19 virus.Employees at the Kroondal chrome mine in South Africa have been informed the facility will not restart after lockdown measures are relaxed b...Read More