European steel association Eurofer supports the plan announced by the European Commission (EC) to counter the trade sanctions to be introduced by the United States under its Section 232 rules.The EU is ready to react proportionately and fully, in line with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, if the US measures are formalized and are seen to affect the EU's economic interests, the EC said.US Pres...Read More

Domestic prices for heavy steel plate in Southern Europe have increased over the past week, reflecting rising slab costs, sources told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday March 7.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for domestic grade-S235JR heavy steel plate in Southern Europe was ?,?580-590 ($718-730) per tonne ex-works on Wednesday, up by ?,?10 per tonne week-on-week.The assessment reflected "worka...Read More

Iranian export prices for steel billet and slab continued to rise in the week ended Wednesday March 7 with bookings agreed at higher prices, supported by the upward trend in the global market and reduced availability of the materials.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for Iranian billet exports narrowed upward to $518-520 per tonne fob on March 7, against $510-520 per tonne fob a week earlie...Read More

Key data from the Wednesday March 7 pricing session in Europe. Ferro-titanium 70% (max 4.5% Al) $ per kg, delivered duty-paid in EuropeTodayPreviousChange to midpoint of rangeMidpoint % change4.85.400 Titanium scrap turnings, unprocessed (max 0.5% Sn) $ per lb, cif European portsTodayPreviousChange to midpoint of rangeMidpoint % change0.95-10.95-100Titanium scrap turnings, unprocessed (0.5-2%...Read More

The following Metal Bulletin noble alloys and ores prices changed on Wednesday March 7:Noble alloys Ferro-molybdenum basis 65% min, in-warehouse Rotterdam, $/kg Mo: $30.80-31.80 per kg from $31.00-31.30 Ferro-molybdenum MB Chinese free market concentrate, yuan/mtu: 1,680-1,700...Read More

Turkish steel mills have booked more deep-sea scrap for April, with prices rising slightly on strong demand for rebar and billet in the domestic market, sources told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday March 7."Steel mills have already sold a number of billet cargoes to the domestic market at around $585-590 per tonne ex-works," a Turkish source said."Rebar demand in the domestic market is also strong, [s...Read More

The latest bids, offers and deals in the global markets for iron ore, pig iron, direct-reduced iron and other steelmaking raw materials. Latest transaction: iron oreIron oreRio Tinto, tender, 170,000 tonnes of 61% Fe Pilbara Blend fines, sold at $73.42 per tonne cfr China, laycan April 4-13.Vale, Global Ore, 280,000...Read More

Japanese buyers of seaborne coking coal will have to pay a higher price for their January-March volumes in comparison with the preceding quarter, with the emergence of fresh supply concerns last month leading to an uncertain outlook for prices in the coming quarter. Metal Bulletin's fob Australia Premium Hard Coking Coal Index averaged $236.07 per tonne over the December-February period, up 23% co...Read More

Iron ore prices fell further on Wednesday March 7 after a seaborne cargo changed hands at a lower price. Metal Bulletin's 62% Fe Iron Ore Index Today: $75.84 per tonne cfr QingdaoDaily change: down by $0.23 per tonneMonth-to-date average: $77.33 per tonneMetal Bulletin's 58% Fe Premium Index Today: $60.33 per tonne cfr QingdaoDaily change: down by $0.23 per tonneMonth-to-date average: $61.08 per.....Read More

Iron ore prices fell further on Wednesday March 7 with a cargo of seaborne materials changing hands below $75 per tonne cfr China.Key driversChina's ferrous futures tumbled across the board during the day, with the benchmark contracts shedding 0.5-2.4% of their values compared with the settlement prices on Tuesday.The country's spot rebar and hot-rolled coil prices also fell 20-50 yuan ($3.20-7.90...Read More

The stalemate in the seaborne coking coal market is starting to break, with some sellers lowering their asking price on Wednesday March 7 amid an abundance of premium materials on offer. "If Chinese end-users don't come out to buy, then the market is going to fall," an Indian trader source said. An East Asian mill source said that end-users had been quiet because they thought that there was nothin...Read More

Iron ore exports from Port Hedland in Western Australia dipped to their lowest level in seven months in February 2018, despite showing a year-on-year increase.The port shipped 38.50 million tonnes of the steelmaking raw material last month, up 7.9% from a 13-month low of 35.67 million tonnes in February 2017.But this was down 6.2% from January's 41.06 million tonnes, and the lowest level...Read More

Coal shipments from Australia's metallurgical coal hub of Queensland fell 4.4% on the year in February. Ports in the Australian state shipped 15.98 million tonnes of coal - including some thermal coal - last month, compared with 16.71 million tonnes a year earlier, according to the latest data...Read More

The latest news and price moves to start the Asian day on Thursday March 8.Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange slumped by the 5pm close on Wednesday March 7, with a sell-off spurred by uncertainty stemming from the latest developments over the United States' Section 232 probe. Read more in our live futures report.Here are how LME prices looked at Wednesday's close:Europe's largest copp...Read More

Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were lower across the board during morning trading on Wednesday March 7 - with nickel diving 1.6%.The three-month nickel price is continuing to have another rollercoaster month - it gained $260 per tonne at the close on Tuesday but is now trading $275 lower. "The new threat of trade wars and regional tariffs seems to have [unnerved] consumers in the...Read More

Arbitrage for copper, aluminium, zinc and nickel imported into China on Wednesday March 7*Copper -$86.77 (-550.08 yuan) Aluminium -$442.06 (-2,802.38 yuan) Zinc -$91.32 (-578.9 yuan) Nickel -$536.4 (-3,400.45 yuan) *Metal Bulletin calculates the physical...Read More

China's hot-rolled coil prices decreased at a faster pace on Wednesday March 7 following a weakening of the country's ferrous futures market throughout the day.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 4,050-4,070 yuan ($640-643) per tonne, down by 50 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tianjin): 3,990-4,010 yuan per tonne, down by 50 yuan per tonneThe paper market tumbled after sentiment deteriorated in antici...Read More

The following Metal Bulletin minor metals prices changed on Wednesday March 7:Antimony MB Chinese free market MMTA standard grade II, yuan/tonne: 53,000-53,500 yuan per tonne from 52,000-52,500 yuan Bismuth MB free market, $/lb: $5.20-5.40 per lb from $5.05-5.40...Read More

An overview of the minor metals markets and the reasons for any price moves.Read More

Chinese cobalt prices have remained stable so far this week, though deal prices for domestically-produced metal dipped after the rally in international cobalt prices faltered late last week.Metal Bulletin assessed the Chinese cobalt metal price at 620,000-650,000 yuan per tonne (equivalent to $37.97-39.80 per lb VAT-free) on Wednesday March 7, unchanged from the previous assessment on March 2. Spo...Read More