Prices for hot-rolled and cold-rolled steel coil imports into the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia increased during the week ended Tuesday August 17, although demand was only moderate, sources told Fastmarkets.The reason for this level of demand, given the slow market last week, was the low levels of stock being held in the two countries, sources said.But buyers preferred to make small bookin...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Tuesday August 17 that are worth another look.New Brazilian service center Centro de Cortes de Pr?(C)-Pintados (CPP), which focuses on pre-painted steel products, started operational activity in the southern state of Santa Catarina on August 11, the company told...Read More

A spike in the US Dollar Index in the afternoon of Tuesday August 17 brought down the prices for all base metals except tin and lead by the 5pm close of trading on the London Metal Exchange, with copper and nickel down respectively by 2% and 1.6%.The dollar index hit an intraday high of 93.14 on Tuesday, the highest since Thursday last week, when it reached 93.19."We've had two days of macro uncer...Read More

Seaborne iron ore prices fell on Tuesday August 17, with crude steel production cuts in China leading to thin trading and depressing market sentiment.Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao:  $160.75 per tonne, down $2.77 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao:  $161.65 per tonne, down $2.38 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao:  $129.54 per t...Read More

Seaborne coking coal prices in both the cfr China and fob Australia markets remained largely stable on thin trading on Tuesday August 17, with most buyers cautious about accepting high offers, sources told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $351.82 per tonne, up $1.16 per tonne Hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $305.61 per tonne, up $0.60 per tonne Premi...Read More

Domestic prices for steel rebar in Russia's Central Federal District around Moscow narrowed upward by 2,000 roubles ($27) per tonne in the seven days to Monday August 16.Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, cpt Moscow, Russia, was 66,000 roubles ($900) per tonne including 20% value-added tax on August 16.This price narrowed upward from 64,000-66,000 roubles pe...Read More

Demand for steel rebar and billet remained limited in the United Arab Emirates in the week to Tuesday August 17, with prices already falling and some market participants expecting them to drop even further, sources told Fastmarkets.The lower prices for billet and rebar imports are expected to have a knock-on effect on the domestic market, where prices are also expected to decline because of weak d...Read More

RAPAPORT... India's polished-diamond exports continued to exceed pre-pandemic levels in July as the market extended its recovery.The outgoing shipments more than doubled year on year to $2.26 billion, the highest since February 2019, according to data the country's Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) released this week.Rough imports also showed a significant increase, reflect...Read More

RAPAPORT... Pandora's revenue increased in the second quarter as solid US demand and online sales growth outweighed the jeweler's weak performance in mainland China.The company's sales rose by 84% year on year for the period - which ended June 30 - hitting DKK 5.16 billion ($816.1 million), Pandora said Tuesday. In comparison to 2019's second quarter, sales were up 13%, and online revenue spiked 1...Read More

RAPAPORT... Iris, you have been a strong advocate of sustainability for over 20 years. Why are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) so important now?The 17 SDGs are the sustainability agenda for the world as agreed by 193 countries. They are about people, prosperity, planet, peace and partnerships. They are about leaving no one behind. It is an excellent framework for any company to us...Read More

(IDEX Online) - Police in Surat, India, have seized GIA certificates being used to fraudulently inflate the value of diamonds.They also confiscated a laser machine used to inscribe inferior stones with bogus GIA numbers and a number of diamonds.Officers acted after a number of complaints at the city's Mahidharpura diamond market and arrested a man."He collected certificates of only high-value...Read More

(IDEX Online) - A 14.60-ct diamond has been certified as the largest polished lab grown gem produced by the CVD process.The F/VVS2 stone was made by Ethereal Green Diamond, in Mumbai, India, and graded by the IGI lab.Last November, the Chinese manufacturer Shanghai Zhengshi Technology claimed a CVD record with a 12.75-ct F/VVS2.Before that, in June 2020, the GIA lab in Carlsbad, California, graded...Read More

China's National Development & Reform Commission (NDRC) urged all of the country's provinces to take effective measures to meet the annual energy consumption and carbon emissions targets, in its monthly press conference on Tuesday August 17.The commission will supervise these measures, it added, especially the target of reducing energy consumption intensity."In the next step, our committee will fu...Read More

(IDEX Online) - A Philippe Dufour watch, made in 1995 for the Sultan of Brunei, sold yesterday for a record-breaking $7.33m.It became the priciest timepiece by an independent watchmaker ever sold at auction. The Grande et Petite Sonnerie - so named because of its hourly and quarter-hourly chimes  - is one of only eight ever produced.  It was sold on A Collected Man, a specialist web...Read More

The three-month aluminium price on the London Metal Exchange registered gains on the morning of Tuesday August 17 while the front-month contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange also rose to new highs amid supply disruptions to the flow of metals and raw materials.Three-month aluminum was at $2,632 per tonne at 9am on Tuesday, up by $30 per tonne from Monday's closing price of $2,602 per tonne. Th...Read More

Operations have been temporarily halted in Alashankou Port in Bortala Mongol autonomous prefecture, Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, following reports of three new COVID-19 cases in the region on August 15.Commodities that have already arrived there, including copper cathodes, copper concentrates, refined zinc and zinc concentrates, are being held, and deliveries will be delayed...Read More

A summary of China-headquartered Huayou Cobalt's results for the six months ended June 30, 2021, as released by the company on Monday August 16.January-June 2021 results(year-on-year change)Revenue 14.29 billion yuan ($2.21 billion), up by 57.91%Net profit 1.42 billion yuan,...Read More

South Korean lithium-ion battery manufacturer LG Energy Solution (LGES) has entered into an offtake agreement with Australian Mines Ltd for battery-grade nickel and cobalt materials produced by the latter.Under the agreement, the Korean company will have access to 71,000 tonnes of nickel and 7,000 tonnes of cobalt in the form of mixed hydroxide precipitate for six years starting from the end of 20...Read More

Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States again tested the $96-per-hundredweight ($1,920-per-short-ton) level after the latest spot deals indicated that producers still have the upper hand on transaction pricing for September and October shipment. Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $95.87 per cwt ($1,917.40 per ton) on Tuesday August 17, up by 0.84% fro...Read More

New Brazilian service center Centro de Cortes de Pr?(C)-Pintados (CPP), which focuses on pre-painted steel products, started operational activity in the southern state of Santa Catarina on August 11, the company told Fastmarkets on Thursday August 12.The unit is located close to the country's main steel trade hub, S??o Francisco do Sul port, and on inauguration had capacity to process 14,000 tonne...Read More