We made it through 2017.And if you look at the stock and asset markets, as Donald Trump tends to do (and as Barack Obama did, too), you'd think all is fine with the world.The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose about 24% last year. The Dow Jones U.S. Real Estate Index rose 6.20%. The price of one bitcoin rose about 1,646%.And so far 2018 has been more of the same.On the flip side of that euphoria ho...Read More

Gold regains bid tone in Europe. Equities drop in early trade. Gold is mildly bid in Europe, possibly due to moderate losses in the European equities. As of writing, the metal (XAU/USD) is trading at $1314/Oz levels; up 0.23 percent on the day. Prices hit a one-week low of $1308.22 in Asia, tracking the rise in the US 10-year treasury yield to 2.57 percent (highest level since March). The recove...Read More

Dear Reader,The Dow required just 23 record-breaking trading days to leap from 24,000 to 25,000.The same Dow took 24 trading days to leap 1,000 points under the old record… a record established only last year.Can we now expect the Dow to break 26,000 within the next 22 trading days?And does this galloping pace mean we have entered the crack-up boom - the manic boom that precedes the bust?Tod...Read More

A partnership between Colorado School of Mines and nonprofit Quality of Life Plus that is bringing Mines students together with injured veterans to to engineer custom solutions for specific mobility problems was recently featured by multiple news outlets, including The Denver Post, CBS4 Denver, FOX31 Denver and the Golden Transcript. The Denver Post: Disabled Colorado veterans gain new mobility...Read More

Domestic prices for steel beams in Europe are predicted to increase over the coming weeks while demand levels and ferrous scrap prices stay firm, market sources told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday January 10.Domestic prices have been unchanged since the end of last year, with the material trading at historic high prices.Mills are hoping to raise prices even higher, however, and one Northern European...Read More

European mills are expected soon to increase their domestic offer prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) by ?,?20-40 per tonne, sources have told Metal Bulletin.In the meantime, Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for domestic HRC in Northern Europe was ?,?540-550 ($645-657) per tonne ex-works on Wednesday January 10, compared with ?,?530-550 per tonne ex-works a week earlier.The assessment represe...Read More

Nickel continued to rally on the London Metal Exchange during afternoon trading on Wednesday January 10, closing in positive territory alongside the rest of the metals.The three-month nickel price closed up 1.8% on Tuesday's close, having hit an intraday high of $13,200 per tonne earlier, thanks to a tighter market and robust demand from the stainless steel sector."We have a constructive view over...Read More

A wave of labor negotiations at several of the world's leading copper mines is taking place this year and could have a significant impact to the global copper supply and prices.Among such talks are BHP-operated Escondida mine, Antofagasta's Los Pelambres and several of Codelco's mines, all in...Read More

The London Metal Exchange closed 2017 in positive fashion as average daily volume (ADV) climbed 19.3% after two previous months of decline. Lead was the strongest performer, with ADV climbing over 50% from December 2016 with 55,717 lots. Last month, lead was the only base metal to record a significant year-on-year increase. Copper's ADV was up 24.3% from the previous year to 150,723 lots, after it...Read More

Metals merchant Traxys has hired Paolo Cabrejos to lead and expand its West Latin American trading unit starting this month. Cabrejos was formerly the commercial manager at Peruvian zinc-lead-silver miner Volcan Compa???-a Minera but departed when the miner was...Read More

A restart of production operations at the Ambatovy nickel-cobalt joint venture in Madagascar following a recent tropical cyclone has been delayed to the end of the month due to equipment damage, according to Sherritt International. In particular, damage incurred by the acid production facilities will require repairs that will affect the pace of ramp production up again, the Canada-based company sa...Read More

Comex copper prices bounced back on the morning of Wednesday January 10 morning thanks to a weaker dollar, having previously fallen for three consecutive sessions.Comex copper prices bounced-back Wednesday morning after sliding for three straight sessions amid dollar weakness.Copper for March settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 2.85 cents or 0.9% to $3.2445 pe...Read More

After a year focused on re-establishing stability, the London Metal Exchange has started 2018 with its attention on driving more liquidity to the bourse by launching the Introducing Broker membership category and broadening its contract portfolio, says senior metals market consultant Martin Hayes. Twelve months ago, it was fair to say that the LME was facing a period of uncertainty - it had lost i...Read More

A union strike scheduled to start on Wednesday January 10 at Glencore's Minera Lomas Bayas copper mine in Chile has been called off after a breakthrough at contract negotiations. The proposal, including a 2% salary increase and a $10,750 bonus, was accepted by unionised workers on Monday, Glencore spokesman Charles Watenphul told Metal Bulletin. As a result, workers have agreed to...Read More

Domestic prices for wire rod rose in both Northern and Southern Europe this week with European mills pushing through increases because of higher production costs, sources told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday January 10.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for domestic mesh-quality wire rod in Northern Europe was ?,?545-565 ($651-675) per tonne delivered on Wednesday, up by ?,?5-20 per tonne from ?...Read More

Prices for hollow steel sections in Southern Europe have increased this week, with producers in the region responding to firm demand, market sources told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday January 10.Metal Bulletin's price assessment for S235-grade square hollow steel sections made in Southern Europe moved up by ?,?15-20 per tonne to ?,?620-645 ($740-770) per tonne delivered on Wednesday.Prices for simil...Read More

Key data from the January 10 pricing session in Europe.Ferro-titanium 70% (max 4.5% Al) $ per kg, delivered duty-paid in EuropeToday Previous Change to midpoint of range Midpoint % change 4.80-5.60 4.80-5.60 0 0  Titanium scrap turnings, unprocessed (max 0.5% Sn) $ per lb, cif European ports  Titanium scrap turnings, unprocessed (0.5-2% Sn) $ per l...Read More

The following Metal Bulletin noble alloys and ores prices changed on Wednesday January 10:Noble alloys Molybdenum Europe drummed molybdic oxide, $/lb: $11.00-11.30 per lb from $11.20-11.40 Ferro-molybdenum basis 65% min, in-warehouse Rotterdam, $/kg Mo: $26.50-27.10 per kg from...Read More

The Turkish deep-sea scrap market went quiet on Wednesday January 10, with the mills in the country trying to put downward pressure on prices.But while mills were trying to reduce scrap prices, suppliers remained firm because the heavy winter conditions increased their costs, sources said."The mills went quiet, waiting for a supplier who is in hurry to sell. Five or six Baltic Sea suppliers...Read More

China's coke export offer prices have come down from a peak, in line with domestic prices, but limited downside is expected, Metal Bulletin was told on Wednesday January 10.Metal Bulletin's assessment of export prices for Chinese coke with 65% coke strength after reaction (CSR), 12.5% ash, and in physical sizes of 30-90mm, was $360-365 per tonne fob China for the week ended January 9.This was down...Read More