Indian steel producer Jindal Steel & Power Ltd (JSPL) has reported a huge increase in steel exports for April 2020, despite the impact of the Covid-19 lockdown significantly reducing the steel output of other domestic producers.India entered a 21-day lockdown on March 25 - which has since been extended twice and now runs to May 18 - to slow the spread of the Covid-19 virus, with man...Read More

Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Europe have been stable day on day on Tuesday May 5 in a slow market, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe was ?,?423.00 ($462.10) per tonne on Tuesday May 5, down by only ?,?0.13 per tonne day on day from ?,?423.13 per tonne on Monday.Tuesday's index was calculated based on "workable" prices a...Read More

Flat steel import prices in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia decreased, with the market still very slow amid concerns over the spread of the 2019-nCoV coronavirus as well as the start of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, sources said on Tuesday May 5.No deals were heard during the week while steel consumption was very slow amid Ramadan - when steel consumption traditionally falls be...Read More

Some of the prices for steel billet and rebar in the United Arab Emirates decreased over the past week, with demand weak because of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, as well as the Covid-19 pandemic, market sources said on Tuesday May 5.Authorities in the United Arab Emirates announced a curfew from 10pm until 6am local time for the Ramadan period, which started on April 23.Market participants in...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...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

The trend for China to actively import relatively cheap iron metallics and semi-finished steel products seen in 2019 continued into the first quarter of this year, but can this be sustained? The answer to this question will come down to the price-competitiveness of the products, as Fastmarkets' research team detailed in the 2020 preview series earlier in the year. As the chart below illustrat...Read More

The Singapore Exchange's (SGX) 65% Fe iron ore derivatives contract registered another strong month with 3.3 million tonnes traded in April, according to SGX data published on Tuesday May 5. Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $84.04 per tonne, unchanged. 62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $86.70 per tonne, unchanged. 58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qing...Read More

Ukrainian steelmaker Metinvest redirected its merchant pig iron production to hot-rolled coil output in the first quarter of this year, the company said on Monday May 4.In January-March, the company produced just 108,000 tonnes of merchant pig iron. This was 74% less than in the October-December quarter of 2019, when the corresponding output was 416,000 tonnes.This tonnage was produced at Ilyich S...Read More

Seaborne coking coal prices were unchanged on Tuesday May 5 in the absence of Chinese market participants observing a holiday for Labor Day, but pessimism is growing amid a negative outlook for Indian demand.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $107.12 per tonne, unchangedPremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $117.33 per tonne, unchangedHard coking coal, fob DBCT: $93.26 per to...Read More

U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures advanced 36 points in pre-opening trade. Index futures were virtually unchanged following release of the March Trade Deficit at 8:30 AM EDT. Consensus was $44.0 billion versus $39 billion in February. Actual was $44.4 billion.The Canadian Dollar was virtually unchanged at US 71.31 cents following release of Canada's Trade Bala...Read More

Look beyond market approach to project valuations: van ZylLeadershipCardinal heading down familiar gold roadSPONSOREDcardinal resourcesSarama right in the middle of big exploration, corporate build-upSPONSOREDsarama resources Exore excels in Cote d'IvoireSPONSOREDexore resourcesVancouver-based Barrian Mining Corp has launched a private placement at 22c/share to raise up to C$10 million (US$7 m...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

Cardinal heading down familiar gold roadSPONSOREDcardinal resourcesSarama right in the middle of big exploration, corporate build-upSPONSOREDsarama resources Exore excels in Cote d'IvoireSPONSOREDexore resourcesSeven ways the resources sector can survive the COVID-19 crisisSPONSOREDproudfootThe company said measured and indicated tonnes at Empire were now 19.3 million tonnes with copper conten...Read More

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.On April 30 Trump said a trade agreement signed in January between the United States and China was "secondary to what took place with the virus." And during an interview with Fox news on May 3, Trump laid the blame for the...Read More

Kazakh company YDD Corp is targeting sales of ferro-silicon into North America this year, with the first shipments planned for next month, according to its output distributor on the project, Swiss trading house Helvetia Resources. YDD started cold commissioning three furnaces at its new Karaganda ferro-silicon operation in Kazakhstan at the end of 2018, with the aim of exporting ferro-silicon...Read More

The price spread for Europe-origin high-carbon ferro-chrome widened by a couple of cents per lb to $0.17 per lb in the week ended Friday May 1.This came after deals were reported at higher prices following the increase in the ferro-chrome and charge chrome benchmark for shipments in the second quarter of 2020. The gap was $0.20 per lb between the highest and lowest reported deal prices in the week...Read More

May 05, 2020 - Brixton Metals Corporation (TSXV: BBB) (the "Company" or "Brixton") is pleased to announce drill results from its wholly owned Langis Mine Project located in the Cobalt Camp, Ontario, Canada. Sixteen holes were drilled for a total of 992.50 metres.Highlights of New Drill Results at the Langis ProjectDrill hole LM20-83 intersected 5.00m of 1,293.34 g/t silver, including 2.00m of 3,20...Read More

As if there weren't enough upheaval in the markets. Now Canada's Bank of Nova Scotia (Scotiabank) - one of the world's biggest lenders to the physical precious metals industry - has apparently told staff that it plans to close its metals business. Reuters, quoting two sources, reported last week that the bank will unwind its precious metals trading business in early 2021. Scotiabank has been invol...Read More

This episode features an interview with Northern Miner editor-in-chief Trish Saywell on the latest news in the mining industry, including the impact of the coronavirus on commodities and the economy. She also discusses Barrick and Zijin Mining's clash with the Government of Papua New Guinea over the Porgera mine.All this and more with editor and host Adrian Pocobelli.Music Credits:"Rattlesnake Rai...Read More