Prices for steel hollow sections in Europe remained flat on Wednesday June 30, with mills continuing to struggle to obtain feedstock material, sources have told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel sections (medium), domestic, delivered Northern Europe, was ?,?1,370-1,420 ($1,631-1,690) per tonne on June 30, unchanged week on week.Hot rolled coil, the feedstock for hollow sections,...Read More

Just before the hunt begins, thehunter needs to be sure its prey feels safe. Will we see a promising short-termrally in gold?After the USD Index reasserted itsdominance once again, its bellowing howl sent shivers down the spine ofcurrency traders. When the U.S. Dollar Index is on the hunt, the preciousmetals are often its prey. The alpha wolf is poised to lead the pack over themedium term, and the...Read More

German steel maker Thyssenkrupp is to replace its four blast furnaces and switch to a system based on direct-reduction of raw material using hydrogen by 2025, the company announced on Tuesday June 29, following a visit by federal government ministers.The company confirmed that it will gradually replace the blast furnaces with direct-reduction plants fueled by green hydrogen, each able to melt soli...Read More

Home prices are surging, making some investors worry about the housing market. These fears seem to be exaggerated, but bubble-like conditions are widespread.House prices are surging. As the chart below shows, the S&P/Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index has reached 239 in February 2021, the highest number in history and about 30% higher than during the 2006 peak. What’s more, the...Read More

China's domestic rebar prices remained flat on Wednesday June 30 on weak demand while the futures price gained.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 4,860-4,880 yuan ($752-755) per tonne, unchanged day on dayThe purchasing managers' index (PMI) for the steel industry was 45.1 points in June, down by 1 point from May, according to the China Federation...Read More

When gold stock bulls complain about a “smack down”, a “hit” or a “smash” against the poor gold stock sector what they should be thinking about is what a relatively small market the gold stock universe is compared to the multitude of galaxies populated by cyclical and risk on stocks and commodities and the massive bond market. The gold stock sector’s noise...Read More

Workers at Celsa Group's Spanish mill are holding a second day of industrial action, demanding a new collective labor agreement and an investment plan for the site, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday June 30. The first strike was held on Monday June 28 at Celsa Atlantic steelworks, located in Laracha, north of Spain. The second strike started at 9am on Wednesday and will last until 10pm, source...Read More

With the Chinese government setting 2030 as the target for China's carbon emissions to peak and 2060 for it to achieve carbon neutrality, the country's steel sector will have to change the way it does business.Fastmarkets speaks to market participants for their views on what these changes might be, and what challenges lie ahead.1. Reduce hot metal productionReducing hot metal output - such as via...Read More

Asian steel scrap imports fluctuated wildly from territory to territory in 2020, with South Korea and Bangladesh reporting decreases while Taiwan and Vietnam recorded increases.Japan, Asia's largest steel scrap supplier, exported 9.39 million tonnes of the steelmaking raw material last year - over a fifth more than in 2019.Vietnam became the single largest importer of Japanese scrap last year; at...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday June 30 that are worth another look.BHP announced in 2018 that the depletion of its 80-million-tonnes-per-year Yandi mine in its Western Australia iron ore operations would begin from the second half of 2021. Fastmarkets explores how the low-grade fines landscape...Read More

Domestic prices for cold-rolled coil in Europe inched up over the week to Wednesday June 30, despite slow trading activity, sources have told Fastmarkets.The number of transactions for domestic material has been minimal.Buyers have been refraining from purchases due to long lead times from domestic mills. They preferred to remain in 'wait-and-see' mode until the price trend became clear. Full cred...Read More

An overview of the consumer electronics markets and their latest price moves.Janie Davies, Cristina Belda and...Read More

An overview of the specialty steel raw materials markets in Europe and their latest price moves.Dalila Ouerghi and...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Wednesday June 30 that are worth another look.BHP announced in 2018 that the depletion of its 80-million-tonnes-per-year Yandi mine in its Western Australia iron ore operations would begin from the second half of 2021. Fastmarkets explores how the low-grade fines landscape...Read More

BHP announced in 2018 that the depletion of its 80-million-tonnes-per-year Yandi mine in its Western Australia iron ore operations would begin from the second half of 2021. Fastmarkets explores how the low-grade fines landscape will adapt to the loss of this key brand. 1. How will the market move forward? Some traders believe the depletion of the Yandi mine will most likely prompt market participa...Read More

With the Chinese government setting 2030 as the target for China's carbon emissions to peak and 2060 for it to achieve carbon neutrality, the country's steel sector will have to change the way it does business.Fastmarkets speaks to market participants for their views on what these changes might be, and what challenges lie ahead.1. Reduce hot metal productionReducing hot metal output - such as via...Read More

Copper's three-month price has shown the biggest fall during June among base metals on the London Metal Exchange, rocked by Chinese announcements and rising inventories, while the prices of other base metals such as aluminium and tin were higher than on June 1.Copper's price was $9,374.50 per tonne on Wednesday June 30 at the close of trading, falling from $10,245 per tonne on June 1.Among the fac...Read More

Iron ore prices rose on Wednesday June 30 when concerns were raised about China's overall crude steel output for 2021, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $214.08 per tonne, up by $1.75 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $217.85 per tonne, up by $2.91 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $180.95 per tonne, up by $1.33 per t...Read More

China's domestic rebar prices remained flat on Wednesday June 30 on weak demand while the futures price gained.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 4,860-4,880 yuan ($752-755) per tonne, unchanged day on dayThe purchasing managers' index (PMI) for the steel industry was 45.1 points in June, down by 1 point from May, according to the China Federation...Read More

Global demand for silver continues at a frenetic pace, with total investment and industrial demand combining this year to exceed global mine supply. That's a... by Craig Hemke via Sprott Money NewsThe month of July looks to be another month of remarkably strong demand for silver delivery off of COMEX. Today let's look at the history to provide some perspective.Again, any time we talk about COMEX...Read More