Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday June 8 that are worth another look.Workers at Italian flat steel producer ArcelorMittal Italia will go on strike on Tuesday June 9 to protest job cuts, presented as part of new industrial plan, Italian trade unions Fim, Fiom and Uilm said on June 6.The main workers' union representing employees of Cobre Panam??, Utramipa, is pressur...Read More
While the silver price has yet to experience the significant move that many like myself are still fully expecting, that doesn't mean the developments are...Chris Marcus interviewed on Jean-Claud's Beyond Mystic via Arcadia EconomicsWhile the silver price has yet to experience the significant move that many like myself are still fully expecting, that doesn't mean the developments are not happening...Read More
International trade protection measures continued to loom large over global steel markets over the past year - to which the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic have created further challenges. Alongside Fastmarkets' annual ranking of steelmakers by output, our correspondents around the world review developments in their regional steel sectors Right now, most steelmakers will have much more on their m...Read More
The three-month tin price on the London Metal Exchange was the standout performer at the close of trading on Monday June 8, keeping well supported throughout the afternoon amid falling exchange stocks, while aluminium futures breached $1,600 per tonne at the close for the first time since March 19.Tin's underlying price closed at $16,665 per tonne on Monday afternoon, up from an intraday low of $1...Read More
Despite active trading, seaborne premium hard coking coal prices dropped on Monday June 8 because of concerns over import restrictions in China and weak ex-China demand.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $108.34 per tonne, down $1.65 per tonne Premium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $115.28 per tonne, down $1.24 per tonneHard coking coal, fob DBCT: $87.25 per ton...Read More
Iron ore prices surged on Monday June 8 following Vale's suspension of its Itabira complex, despite its iron ore fines guidance being unchanged, sources said.Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $105.67 per tonne, up $4.93 per tonne.62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $108.65 per tonne, up $5.41 per tonne. 58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $94.53 per tonne, up $5....Read More
Access our research platformsSign-in to our platforms to access our extensive research, our latest insight, data and analytics and to connect to our industry experts.The outbreak of coronavirus, the oil price crash and the impending global recession present an enormous challenge for energy and natural resources. How are you keeping up with the spread of Covid-19 and its impact on your sector?We&rs...Read More
Access our research platformsSign-in to our platforms to access our extensive research, our latest insight, data and analytics and to connect to our industry experts.The U.S has increased tariffs on $200bn of Chinese goods to 25%, from 10%, impacting a number of metals. Commentary below comes from the Wood Mackenzie metals team:Copper By Wood Mackenzie Senior Consultant, Yanting Zhou"Previous...Read More
RAPAPORT... Gabrielle Grazi has joined the Natural Diamond Council (NDC) as its vice president for retail following seven years at Signet Jewelers.The newly created role involves establishing the NDC as the natural-diamond authority among industry members in North America. Grazi will also lead the organization's efforts in the area of trade conferences and events, the NDC said last week.She s...Read More
RAPAPORT... Creating a special connection with the customer can help diamond sellers during the era of online commerce, Martin Rapaport explained in his annual "State of the Diamond Industry" address. Speaking via a webinar due to the coronavirus pandemic, Rapaport noted that the rise of online sales brought both threats and opportunities for the sector. But "the key to your success is custom...Read More
RAPAPORT... De Beers executive Feriel Zerouki will succeed Edward Asscher as president of the World Diamond Council (WDC) in 2022, the organization said Monday.Zerouki, De Beers' senior vice president of international relations and ethical initiatives, will become the first woman to head the WDC, which works to keep conflict diamonds out of the supply chain. Its board confirmed her election as vic...Read More
RAPAPORT... The World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) has opened its membership to companies outside the core diamond trade, aiming to make the group more relevant and influential.Organizations connected to the diamond industry, such as retailers, can now become associate members, and their representatives can sit on the WFDB executive committee, it said Monday.One of the first such comp...Read More
RAPAPORT... LVMH has promoted St?(C)phane Bianchi to CEO of its watches and jewelry division, starting July 1. Since 2018, he has been CEO of watchmaking and of the French luxury group's TAG Heuer timepiece brand.Bianchi will oversee high-end jewelers Chaumet and Fred, with those brands' managing directors reporting to him, and will retain overall responsibility for the TAG Heuer, Hublot and...Read More
RAPAPORT... Rough-diamond sales will drop by 30% to 40% this year as Covid-19 restrictions have shut down the global supply chain, Moody's Investors Service projected.The market won't recover until the second half when social-distancing rules become looser, the ratings agency said last week. As a result, global rough revenues will decline to between $7 billion and $8 billion for 2020 amid low...Read More
(IDEX Online) - French luxury conglomerate LVMH is now expected to go ahead as planned with its $16.2bn acquisition of US jeweler Tiffany & Co, after days of fevered speculation. Reports in the fashion Bible Women's Wear Daily (WWD) suggested late last week that LVMH Mo?? <
(IDEX Online) - Edward Asscher has been elected to serve a second term as president of the World Diamond Council, leading the fight against "conflict diamonds". He will be succeeded after his two-year term by Feriel Zerouki, who will make history as the WDC's first female president. Mr Asscher, 73, recently stood down as president of the iconic Amsterdam-based Royal Asscher Diamond Co, a fam...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The COVID-19 pandemic could see sales of rough diamonds globally fall by as much as 40 per cent. Lockdown measures have badly hit all stages of the diamond value chain from rough diamond miners, through cutters and polishers to the jewelry end market, according to Moody's, the international rating agency. "We forecast a 30 to 40 per cent fall in global revenue from rough...Read More
RAPAPORT... Lending to India's gem and jewelry industry fell 18% during the past two fiscal years as the 2018 Nirav Modi banking scandal continued to fuel caution among banks, according to credit agency CARE Ratings.Outstanding credit to the sector declined 1% to INR 721 billion ($9.54 billion) during the fiscal year ending March 31, 2019, from INR 727 billion ($9.63 billion) on March 30, 201...Read More
The three-month tin price on the London Metal Exchange was the standout performer at the close of trading on Monday June 8, keeping well supported throughout the afternoon amid falling exchange stocks, while aluminium futures breached $1,600 per tonne at the close for the first time since March 19.Tin's underlying price closed at $16,665 per tonne on Monday afternoon, up from an intraday low of $1...Read More
Workers at Italian flat steel producer ArcelorMittal Italia will go on strike on Tuesday June 9 to protest job cuts, presented as part of new industrial plan, Italian trade unions Fim, Fiom and Uilm said on June 6. ArcelorMittal presented a new industrial plan to the Italian authorities last week that included 5,000 job cuts, market sources told Fastmarkets. In early March this year, before the Co...Read More