Brazil will look for ways to avoid being included in any measures related to the US Section 232 investigation into steel and aluminum imports."The Brazilian government is deeply concerned about the information released today that the United States intends to impose an additional tariff of 25% on steel imports and 10% on aluminium imports as a result of the investigation based on Section 232," the...Read More

Northeast Asia is becoming the "price-maker" for caustic soda going forward, with the market in a price upswing cycle, according to an analyst at IHS Global Chlor-Alkali. "The Northeast Asia region has become today's caustic consumption powerhouse," Hazel Kreuz said, referring to China, Japan, Mongolia and South Korea. "It is shifting to the high cost global chlor-alkali region, becoming the price...Read More

Aluminium and tin were the only base metals on the London Metal Exchange to close the day in positive territory on Thursday March 1, with the rest of the complex diving.Lead prices hit a two-and-a-half-month low of $2,443.50 earlier today and closed down 2.1% after recent stock inflows eased the nearby spreads significantly. The cash/three-month spread is now at a $6.15-per-tonne contango from a $...Read More

Spain, Europe's third largest zinc consumer, used almost a third less zinc last year compared with 2016, according to the World Bureau of Metal Statistics (WBMS). In 2017, the country's annual consumption dropped 28% to 203,900 tonnes, versus 283,400 tonnes a year earlier, the data released on Wednesday February 28 showed. By comparison, there was a 4.3% decline...Read More

Evraz has signed an agreement to sell its last Ukrainian asset - Evraz DMZ (EDMZ) - the company announced on Thursday March 1.The buyer is Senalior Investments, part of the DCH Group owned by Ukrainian businessman Alexander Yaroslavskiy. The approximate cost of the deal is $106 million.In June 2017, DHC Group also purchased Evraz's Kryvyi Rih-based iron ore asset Sukha Balka.EDMZ is located in Dne...Read More

The purchasing managers' index (PMI) for the eurozone manufacturing sector has contracted for the second month in a row, amid a slowdown in the growth of new export orders, data organization IHS Markit said on Thursday March 1.February's final manufacturing PMI for the eurozone was 58.6, compared with 59.6 for January and the record high of 60.1 in December 2017.Anything above 50 indicates that th...Read More

German metals distributor Kl??ckner made a 12.3% year-on-year increase in earnings over the full year of 2017 because of higher prices and efficiency measures, the company said on Wednesday February 28.Kl??ckner's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (Ebitda) rose to ?,?220 million ($269 million) in 2017, up from ?,?196 million in 2016.The increase was a result of interna...Read More

The Brazilian competition regulator has rejected CSN's appeal against the decision to approve a merger between long steel producers ArcelorMittal Brasil and Votorantim Siderurgia.The members of Cade's administrative court unanimously rejected on Wednesday February 28 the...Read More

Turkish rebar and wire rod export prices have continued to increase in line with the rising costs of raw materials and strong demand, sources said on Thursday March 1.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for rebar exports out of Turkey on Thursday was $595-600 per tonne fob on an actual weight basis, up from the last week's $585-595 per tonne.Turkish steel mills were heard to have...Read More

Turkish domestic rebar prices have continued to strengthen amid rising scrap costs, while demand for the material was also firm, sources said on Thursday March 1.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for domestic rebar in Turkey on Thursday was $605-625 per tonne ex-works, up from last week's $590-620 per tonne.The domestic rebar price in the Izmir region was $605-610 per tonne ex-works, while...Read More

Turkish steel billet prices have continued to climb up over the past week, amid strengthening scrap values and good demand for the material, sources said on Thursday March 1.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for billet imports into Turkey on Thursday was $535-545 per tonne cfr, up from the last week's $525-540 per tonne.Suppliers in the CIS region have enjoyed the demand from Turkish custom...Read More

Chilean lithium producer SQM's share prices have gone down by 13% in less than a week to stand at $50.71 at the close of the market on Wednesday February 28, compared with $58.32 on February 23.Investors' fears of oversupply in the lithium market were triggered on February 26 with the release by investment bank Morgan Stanley of research suggesting that the price of lithium could fall by 45% by 20...Read More

The latest ferro-vanadium and vanadium pentoxide (V2O5) transactions, bids, offers and assessments in Europe.To view the latest price quotations, follow the links below: Europe - Ferro-vanadium delivered duty-paid in Europe - Vanadium pentoxide in-warehouse Rotterdam China - Ferro-vanadium, 78% min, fob China, $ per kg V - Vanadium pentoxide, 98% min, fob China, $ per lb V2O5&n...Read More

Ferro-alloys trader Naja Nedergaard has joined the ferro-alloys department of ThyssenKrupp Raw Materials, the company told Metal Bulletin on Thursday March 1.Nedergaard formerly worked in the ferro-niobium department of China...Read More

Spot prices for European molybdic oxide and ferro-molybdenum climbed in Metal Bulletin's midweek assessment, extending gains on renewed demand and an expectation that consumers in the steel sector will add to that demand for second quarter deliveries soon. Metal Bulletin assessed molybdic oxide prices at $12.80-12.85 per lb in-warehouse Rotterdam on Wednesday February 28, up from $12.55-12.75...Read More

World manganese ore supply totaled 1.74 million tonnes of manganese units in January, an increase of 43% from year-ago volumes, according to the International Manganese Institute (IMnI). The increase reflects production cuts in the comparable period, while the 6% decline in output from December 2017 illustrates the strength of production in the month before, the IMnI said. World demand rose 18.4%...Read More

Key data from Metal Bulletin's Wednesday February 28 pricing session in China.Tungsten concentrates 65% WO3 in warehouse China RMB/tonne Key drivers- The tight supply of tungsten concentrates continued and may become more severe throughout March, with many miners halting production during the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and the National People's Con...Read More

Brazilian iron ore export volumes dropped by 7.58% year-on-year in February, according to figures released by national foreign trade ministry MDIC on Thursday March 1.Iron ore shipments came to 23.78 million tonnes, compared with 25.73 million tonnes a year before.Over the same period, export revenues declined by 14.28%, to $1.26 billion from $1.47 billion, due to lower iron...Read More

Iron ore prices recovered some losses on Thursday March 1 and returned above $79 per tonne though demand remained sluggish.Metal Bulletin's 62% Fe Iron Ore Index Today: $79.39 per tonne cfr Qingdao Daily change: up by $0.78 per tonne Month-to-date average: $79.39 per tonne Metal Bulletin's 58% Fe Premium Index Today: $62.05 per tonne cfr QingdaoDaily change: up by $0.43...Read More

Trading activity in the seaborne coking coal market remains thin, though some buyers are expecting prices to rise amid a paucity of Australian supply. A cargo of tier-two product was heard offered around $195-200 per tonne fob Australia while top-tier materials were said to be available at $240-250 per tonne cfr China. "It is definitely a sellers' market at this stage with very few seaborne cargoe...Read More