A strong United States employment report at the end of last week gave most markets something to be cheerful about and that has flowed through into Asian trading on Monday December 9.Trading is likely to remain nervous this week while the manufacturing sector prepares for the holiday season and businesses focus on whether US President Donald Trump follows through with his threat to put 15% tariffs...Read More
Base metals prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were up across the board during the morning trading session on Monday December 9, supported by better-than-expected US jobs data and positive trade developments.The upward momentum seen across the SHFE base metals complex was mainly the result of strong US employment figures released at the end of last week (see other highlights below), which spu...Read More
Brazilian vehicle production decreased by 7.1% year on year in November, according to figures released by national automotive association Anfavea.Vehicle output totaled 227,455 units, compared with 244,771 units in November 2018 and 288,519 units in October. Exports totaled 31,734 units last month, a 7.9% decrease from 34,441 units in November 2018. ...Read More
RAPAPORT... It's not easy for a diamantaire to compete in the emerging diamond-traceability market, admits Bruno Scarselli, a New York-based supplier of fancy-color diamonds. As the likes of De Beers, the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) and others roll out their tracking programs, he urges the trade as a whole to look beyond blockchain and consider its biggest obstacles."We need to res...Read More
RAPAPORT... Sotheby's has appointed Wenhao Yu as deputy chairman ofjewelry for Asia, to help strengthen its expertise and sourcing capabilitiesand expand its business in the region. Yu was previously at Poly Auction Hong Kong, where he founded and headed its jewels and prestige collection department.Prior to that role, he cofounded the jewels and watches department at PolyAuction Beijing. "O...Read More
Fastmarkets published its CIS export billet index later than scheduled on Monday December 9 but it is now appearing as normal. Fastmarkets calculated the steel billet index export, fob Black Sea, CIS at $400 per tonne on Monday December 9. The index was published in Fastmarkets' pricing database, MInD, later than scheduled due to an administrative error. MInD has now been updated with the lat...Read More
RAPAPORT... Alrosa has identified three new exploration sites that couldpotentially yield 17.9 million carats of rough across their lifespan, according to preliminaryestimates.The sites are located close to Alrosa's Mir mine in the Yakutia region of Russia. "Detecting new diamond deposits in [the] Nizhne-Botuobinskaya area will make a significant contribution to the development of Alrosa...Read More
RAPAPORT... J.C. Penney has appointed Karl Walsh as chief digitalofficer, charging him with overseeing improvements to its e-commerce platforms and customer experience. Walsh waspreviously chief digital officer at Danish jeweler Pandora, a role he took onin March. He also worked at Boston Consulting Group and McKinsey & Company. He began at J.C. Penney on December 2, reporting to executiv...Read More
Brazilian steel demand is set to grow in 2020 and support higher domestic prices, Companhia Sider??rgica Nacional (CSN) said in a presentation filed with securities commission CVM.The company expected flat-rolled steel apparent consumption to total 12.92 million tonnes next year, rising by 4.7% in comparison with an estimated 12.34 million tonnes for 2019.Most of that growth would come from a 10%...Read More
PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Multi-commodity explorer EHR Resources has reached an agreement to acquire Canadian diamond company Nanuk Diamonds, as part of its strategy to diversify into diamonds in North America.Nanuk holds 625 mineral claims in Northern Quebec covering 274 km2 and containing several occurrences of diamond-bearing kimberlitic dykes that were originally found in the early 2000...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Sightholder Mouawad has unveiled the $5 million crown created for the Miss Universe competition. The 18-karat gold creation, called The Miss Universe Power of Unity Crown, is set with over 1,770 white diamonds. The headpiece also features three yellow diamonds from Botswana including a 62.83-carat shield-cut canary yellow stone at its center. Through its partnership with...Read More
China's hot-rolled coil prices regained some strength on Monday December 9 amid some supply tightness and an overall pick-up in trading activity in the ferrous market after the Dalian Commodity Exchange launched its iron ore options.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,810-3,820 yuan ($541-543) per tonne, up 50 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tangshan): 3,670 yuan per tonne, up 40 yuan per tonneTradi...Read More
(IDEX Online) - David Yurman has opened its New York flagship store. The 5,000 square-foot location spans three floors on East 57th Street.The store, described by cofounder Sybil Yurmn as "an emporium," offers David Yurman products across all categories, including high jewelry, women's, men's, wedding and watches and a curated assortment of limited-edition pieces exclusive to the 57th St...Read More
Import prices for steel slab in Southeast Asia and East Asia rose during the week to Monday December 9 despite concerns that a potential supply glut could emerge after United States President Donald Trump threatened to restore tariffs on steel imports from Argentina and Brazil.Sources told Fastmarkets that the uptrend in prices has already been disrupted by concerns that Brazilian steelmakers may...Read More
Import prices for rebar in Singapore climbed over the past week because of slight pick-up in buying interest, reflecting continued increases in the costs of steelmaking raw materials.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar) import, cfr Singapore, which mainly looks at cargoes sold into Singapore on a theoretical-weight basis, was at $435-440 per tonne in the week to M...Read More
Suppliers raised their offers for hot-rolled coil into Vietnam over the past week but ran into thin demand from buyers.Fastmarkets' assessment for steel HRC import, cfr Vietnam, which mainly looks at Chinese 2-3mm re-rolling-grade SAE1006 HRC and equivalent products sold into Vietnam, was $465-470 per tonne cfr Vietnam for the week ending Monday December 9, up $3-8 per tonne from $457-467 per tonn...Read More
Iron ore sales volumes from Chilean producer Compa???-a de Acero de Pac?-fico (CAP) are poised to fall by roughly 30% year on year in 2019, as shipments from Guacolda port took longer than expected to resume following an accident in November 2018.Full-year shipments are expected to total 9-10 million tonnes, down by 29-36% from 14 million tonnes in 2018, CAP said on Friday December 6. Early in 201...Read More
Turkish steel producers stayed out of the deep-sea scrap market on Friday December 6 after booking several cargoes earlier in the week to push prices up by more than $10 per tonne since Monday, sources told Fastmarkets.No new cargoes have been booked or come to light during the last two days of the working week. On Monday, it emerged that a steel mill in the Marmara region had booked a U...Read More
The mid-grade seaborne price rose above the $90-per-tonne mark on Monday December 9, for the first time since November 25, while Chinese futures saw strong gains on the Dalian Commodity Exchange.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $93.93 per tonne, up $4.87 per tonne.62% Fe Pilbara Blend fines, cfr Qingdao: $93.02 per tonne, up $4.87 per tonne.62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingd...Read More
Seaborne coking coal prices were largely steady on Monday December 9, with buying activity from China setting the direction and pushing cfr China prices marginally higher.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $136.21 per tonne, unchangedPremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $149 per tonne, up $1.78 per tonneHard coking coal, fob DBCT: $121.33 per tonne, unchangedH...Read More