Antofagasta will target record copper output in 2019 while expecting the market to head into a small deficit next year, boosting copper prices, its chief executive officer Ivan Arriagada said in an interview with Fastmarkets.The London-listed Chilean copper miner has issued guidance to produce 750,000-790,000 tonnes of copper in 2019, up 8% from this year's expected 705,000-720,000 tonnes."It will...Read More

The latest metal markets news and price moves to start the North American day on Monday November 19. Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mostly higher during morning trading despite hawkish rhetoric on the US-China trade relations while a softer dollar index continues to support investment. Here's how base metals prices looked at 11:33am London time:Read our live futures report he...Read More

Arbitrage for copper, aluminium, zinc and nickel imported into China on Monday November 19 * Copper -$188.77 (-1,313.54 yuan) Aluminium -$425.33 (-2,959.55 yuan) Zinc -$144.92 (-1008.41 yuan) Nickel $752.76 (5,237.96 yuan) *Fastmarkets calculates the physical arbitrage for import into China daily by using SHFE front-month and LME three-month...Read More

Plate prices in the United States have held their ground over the past week, with industry participants still wondering whether the market has peaked or could see further upside in 2019.Fastmarkets AMM's price assessment for cut-to-length plate was unchanged at $49.50 per hundredweight ($990 per short ton) on Friday November 16.Lead times average six to nine weeks, according to market participants...Read More

Hot-rolled coil prices fell $1 per hundredweight - 2.5% - last week and now sit solidly below $40 per cwt ($800 per short ton).Fastmarkets AMM's daily US Midwest hot-rolled coil index dropped to $39.41 per cwt ($788.20 per ton) on Friday November 16, down 1.5% from $39.99 per cwt on the previous day and down 2.9% from a trailing five-day average of $40.60 per cwt.HRC prices started last week...Read More

CIS export slab prices continued to decline in the week ended Monday November 19, spurred by the weakening in the finished flat steel sectors both in the CIS and in the global markets, Southeast Asia in particular."Slab prices don't seem to have any upward momentum due to weak markets for hot-rolled coil [HRC] worldwide," a buyer source in East Asia said. "If the HRC [market] doesn't improve, re-r...Read More

CIS export billet prices continued to soften on Monday November 19 with lower bids and offers starting to be heard in the market, after the weakening of prices for imported scrap and exports of finished long steel in Turkey and the CIS.The downturn in the Asian billet market, amid lower offers and pessimism among buyers, created by the possibility of China's return to the export market, was anothe...Read More

Import prices for steel slab in Southeast Asia and East Asia fell in the week to Monday November 19, on lower bids from suppliers and persistently low demand as a result of sluggish domestic hot-rolled coil sales.Fastmarkets MB's weekly import price assessment for slab in Southeast Asia and East Asia was $460-470 per tonne cfr on November 19, down $10 per tonne from a week earlier.Major Indon...Read More

The black tungsten concentrate price in China continued to fall in the week to Friday November 16 amid weak demand, while the ammonium paratungstate (APT) market remained slow with participants awaiting further direction. Concentrates price continues downward trend  APT market remains slow  Ferro-tungsten prices in Europe edge up week on week on good spot demand In Europe, Fastmarkets a...Read More

Fastmarkets summarizes five key points we learned from the 2018 International Chromium Development Association Conference in Baotou, China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, over November 6-8. Spreads in chemical-grade chromite under the spotlight Market participants active in the chemical chromite sector are assessing the performance of spreads between 43-44% UG2 chemical grade and higher purity...Read More

Nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) 811 batteries are penetrating the electric vehicle (EV) battery market slowly, according to Wang Xiaoming, vice general manager for international sales and purchases at Beijing Easpring Material Technology Co.NCM 811 batteries, which have an 8:1:1 proportion of nickel, cobalt and manganese respectively, are among those striving to attain a dominant position in the EV...Read More

Automotive shredders in the United States have continued to adjust their scale buying prices two weeks after the November settlement with all but one rising, indicating there is no downside to shredded scrap in the near future.The price of shred increased $20 per gross ton in November with the price settling at $364 per gross ton in Alabama, $355 per ton in Chicago and $370 per ton in Pittsburgh.R...Read More

Emerging trends on the ferrous scrap futures exchange suggest limited upside potential for No1 busheling, with next month's settlement projected to inch up just $2.06 per gross ton from November and contract quotes declining from December 2018 to May 2019, according to the CME Group.Open interest on the contract is now 3,629 lots (72,580 gross tons) after another 32-lot trade was concluded on Frid...Read More

Turkish domestic scrap prices have softened over the past week with some mills reducing their buy prices because of high stock levels, sources said on Monday November 19.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for domestic auto bundle (DKP grade) ferrous scrap was TRY1,650-1,940 ($309-363) per tonne delivered on Monday, widening downward from last week's TRY1,800-1,940 per tonne.This change in the as...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, Global Ore, 170,000 tonnes of 62% Fe Pilbara Blend fines, traded at $75.30 per tonne cfr China, laycan December 3-12.Vale, Global Ore, 170,000 tonnes of 62% Fe...Read More

Iron ore prices largely picked up on Monday November 19, apart from those for higher grades, leading to a further narrowing of the spread between 65% Fe and 62% Fe indices.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $76.11 per tonne cfr Qingdao, up $0.80 per tonne.MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $75.30 per tonne cfr Qingdao, up $0.19 per tonne.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $79.80 per tonne cfr Qingdao,...Read More

Trading activity in the seaborne coking coal market remained muted on Monday November 19 on end-user import restrictions, despite some participants expressing a bullish outlook on prices amid supply concerns and firm Chinese demand.There is talk in the market that the delivery date of shipments of a premium mid-vol hard coking coal will now be delayed by a month due to mining issues, at least thre...Read More

Limited demand and a muted spot market in China have led to the sixth consecutive monthly fall in iron ore pellet prices.The MB 65% Fe Iron Ore Pellet Index, published by Fastmarkets MB, was at $134.06 per tonne cfr China on Friday November 16, down by $8.49 per tonne from a week earlier.The fall in the MB 65% Fe Iron Ore Pellet index (MBIOI-PT) was based on the visible market activity detailed be...Read More

Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mostly higher during morning trading on Monday November 19 despite hawkish rhetoric on the US-China trade relations while a softer dollar index continues to support investment. Both zinc and tin futures appreciated around 0.6% this morning and remain well supported amid supply concerns and depleting LME stocks. In zinc, continued outflows a...Read More

Antimony prices edged up in China in the week ended Friday November 16 on rising production costs, while prices in Europe continued their downward trend on weak consumer demand. In China, Fastmarkets' price assessment for MMTA standard grade-II antimony, delivered, duty-paid, stood at 50,200-51,000 yuan ($7,235-7,350) per tonne on Wednesday November 14, up 0.7% from 50,000-50,500 yuan per tonne a...Read More