Turkey should avoid reducing its import duty on hot-rolled coil (HRC) because such a move would cause dumped goods to enter the market and harm local producers, an executive with a Turkish HRC producer has told Metal Bulletin.Turkey reduced the import duty on HRC for re-rollers to 3.5% from the previous 5% with effect from January 1, 2018."This means a state subsidy, because the state allows a tax...Read More

Kuwait's ministry of finance has increased the duty applied to imports of rebar to 10% from the previous 5%, effective from March 1 this year until the end of February 2019, Metal Bulletin has heard.There is only one rebar producer active in Kuwait, KWT Steel, with capacity for 1.2 million...Read More

The Chinese ferro-silicon spot market slumped over the past week because of slow demand from key consumers in the steel and magnesium sectors.The market will be vulnerable to further losses if there is no upturn in demand in the near term. Chinese demand lags behind supply... ...and domestic prices fall more than 10% Europe price range widens amid uncertainty US market eases, wary of renewed impor...Read More

Key data from Friday March 9 pricing session in Shanghai.Non-Ferrous Metals Magnesium Metal MB Chinese free market min 99% Mg, ex-works RMB/tonneKey drivers - The Chinese magnesium price plunged to 14,400-14,600 yuan ($2,274-2306) per tonne on March 9 due to the continued decline in prices for raw materials.- The Chinese ferro-silicon price, basis 75% silicon content, slid...Read More

Anglo American has halted iron ore output at its Brazilian Minas-Rio operation after a slurry pipeline designed to transport material from the mining site, in Minas Gerais state, to the port terminal, in Rio de Janeiro state, ruptured on Monday March 12.The timeframe for the production stoppage is still uncertain.In 2017, output of Anglo American's Minas-Rio iron ore totaled 16.80 million tonnes,...Read More

Scrap merchant Sims Metal Management UK has taken over the operations of fellow UK recycler Morley Waste Traders, Sims confirmed to Metal Bulletin on Monday March 12.Morley Waste Traders, which also owns UK scrap metal merchant Lord & Midgley, operates 10 metal waste recycling centers in Yorkshire, northern England, with a combined ferrous and non-ferrous scrap processing capacity of around 150,00...Read More

Demand for imported scrap in Turkey could suffer as a result of the United States applying tariffs on shipments of Turkish steel, a spokeswoman for German steel recycling association BDSV told Metal Bulletin on Monday March 12.Lower demand for Turkish steel in the US under tariffs could lead to a drop in steel production in Turkey and lower scrap demand from the country, the spokeswoman said.Altho...Read More

Turkish domestic scrap prices have moved in varying directions over the past week, with some mills raising their buy prices for auto bundle scrap, while another mill reduced its buy price for ship scrap, sources said on Monday March 12.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for domestic auto bundle scrap (DKP grade) in Turkey was TRY1,260-1,420 ($330-372) per tonne delivered on March 12, widenin...Read More

Seaborne iron ore prices fell further on Monday March 12 following a sharp drop in the futures market. Metal Bulletin's 62% Fe Iron Ore Index Today: $69.93 per tonne cfr Qingdao Daily change: down by $0.16 per tonne Month-to-date average: $74.99 per tonne Metal...Read More

The gap between prices for premium hard coking coal and second-tier materials has narrowed by $20 per tonne over the past week, with the top-tier segment experiencing further weakness on Monday March 12.A bid was made for cargo of premium hard coking coal at $214 per tonne fob Australia while offers for such materials have fallen to about $225 per tonne fob Australia, market participants told Meta...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 oreBeijing Iron Ore Trading Center (Corex) , 15,000 tonnes of 61.23%...Read More

Comex copper prices came under selling pressure on the morning of Monday March 12 in the United States, with markets awaiting to assess the impact of import tariffs that President Donald Trump will sign into law within the next fortnight.Copper for May settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange dipped by 0.95 cents or 0.3% to $3.1265 per lb. "While further selling pressur...Read More

Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange dipped slightly during morning trading on Monday March 12 while looking to consolidate Friday's rally.The three-month copper price was down 1% recently below $6,900 per tonne following a 10,000-tonne delivery into LME-listed warehouses in New Orleans."The extent of Friday's rally caught the market unawares and so the current correction is healthy but...Read More

Physical iron ore prices continued to weaken amid limited liquidity on Monday March 12.Key driversChina's ferrous futures experienced a fourth day of across-the-board losses in comparison with the preceding day's settlement prices, with the benchmark iron ore contract shedding 2.6% of its value.The weathervane billet price in Tangshan also fell 40 yuan ($6.30) per tonne late in the afternoon.North...Read More

Historically low rhenium prices are leading to a decline in the amount of recycled material coming into the market, with several recycling facilities having closed or reduced production.Metal Bulletin's assessed rhenium pellet prices at $623-658 per lb on March 2, down from $700-750 last month and from highs of $4,600-4,850 per lb 10 years ago. Catalyst-grade ammonium perrhenate (AP...Read More

Chinese silicon export prices have been stable due to high raw materials costs and limited output during dry season though market participants are wary of a headwind on low buying interest, while European prices were steady on a hesitant market sentiment.The Chinese grade 553 silicon export price stood at $2,010-2,050 per tonne on Friday March 9, unchanged from one week ago. Since the start of Dec...Read More

Base metals traded on the London Metal Exchange are once again weaker across the board this morning, Monday March 12, with prices off by an average of 0.4%. Losses are fairly tightly grouped between 0.2% and 0.7%, with the three-month copper price down by 0.4% at $6,930 per tonne.Volume has been average with 8,181 lots traded as of 07.17am London time. Today's weakness follows strong rebounds last...Read More

Good morning from Metal Bulletin's offices in Shanghai as we bring you the latest news and pricing stories on Monday March 12.Base metals traded on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were up across the board during Asian morning trading on Monday, with nickel leading the pack higher.The most-traded July nickel contract on the SHFE stood at 104,530 yuan ($16,508) per tonne as of 02.48am London time, up...Read More

Metal Bulletin has corrected the price assessment for its EU domestic stainless Steel grade-304 raw materials index, which was published incorrectly on Monday February 26, due to a data input error.Metal Bulletin's weekly raw materials index for Europe-origin grade-304 stainless steel should have been published as $1,527.51 per tonne on Monday February 26, but a data input error meant the index wa...Read More

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised aluminum and steelworkers on Monday he would defend them against possible U.S. tariffs and called U.S. President Donald Trump to stress that "mutually beneficial" cross-border supply chains should be preserved.Trump said last week he would impose import tariffs of 25 per cent on steel and 10 per cent for aluminum, effective later this month, but exem...Read More