Base metals prices were firmer on the London Metal Exchange on Tuesday April 3, extending gains from before the long Easter weekend at the start of the second quarter, the peak season for metals demand.Aluminium's three-month price, which bucked the uptrend on Thursday and dropped 1.5%, was recovering today and climbing back over $2,000 per tonne.With speculation over trade wars continuing to moun...Read More

Colombian steel producers Ternium and Corpacero have requested an investigation of the country's safeguards against imports of corrugated galvanized steel sheets from all origins.Their request was made on March 16, and was published on the website of the Colombian ministry of trade, industry and tourism on March 26.The domestic sector that produces...Read More

Indian steelmaker JSW and commodities conglomerate Vedanta Resources have launched competing bids to acquire insolvent steelmaker Essar Steel India, sources told Metal Bulletin on Tuesday April 3.Vedanta confirmed to Metal Bulletin that it is bidding for the asset, while JSW said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) that it is bidding with consortium Numetal Mauritius in a joint attempt...Read More

The purchasing managers' index (PMI) for the Eurozone manufacturing sector fell to an eight-month low due to a slowdown in growth across all nations, according to data organization IHS Markit on Tuesday April 3. The final rating for March stood at 56.6, down from 58.6 in February, after the sector experienced its third month of consecutive drops since a record high of 60.6 in December 2017. Anythi...Read More

Prices for imported billet in the United Arab Emirates were unchanged this week, while import rebar prices fell, sources told Metal Bulletin on Tuesday April 3. Demand for imported rebar in both the UAE and Saudi Arabia remained weak. Domestic rebar The major rebar producers in the UAE announced new rebar prices on March 26. The biggest steel producer, Emirates Steel, increased its rebar...Read More

The latest bids, offers and deals in the global markets for hot-rolled coil, cold-rolled coil, hot-dipped galvanized coil, pre-painted galvanized iron, steel plate, steel sheet and other flat steel products. Latest transactions: HRC, CRC, HDGHot-rolled coilChina, export,...Read More

India's Tata Steel hit a peak hot-metal output of 10.95 million tonnes in the financial year ending March 2018 at its blast furnaces in Jamshedpur, compared with 10.83 million tonnes a year ago.It also achieved its best ever saleable steel production of 9.78 million tonnes in the financial year ending March 2018, compared to 9.7 million tonnes in the same period last year, the company said last we...Read More

China's Guiling Pinggang Iron & Steel is to commission a new electric-arc furnace (EAF) mill by the second quarter of 2019, Metal Bulletin has learned.It will have a tapping weight of 120 tonnes and a 120-tonne twin ladle furnace.The EAF will be built in a new production facility in Pingle, Guilin, and aims to serve a growing rebar market, equipment maker Primetals said.It can be charged with ferr...Read More

Due to reporting errors, a story reported by Metal Bulletin on March 27, titled "Global silico-manganese output to rise this year in response to higher demand - IMnI," misrepresented InMI's views on the current markets and has been officially retracted and removed from the Metal Bulletin archive.The organization's spokesman made...Read More

Tungsten miner W Resources has begun earthworks at its La Parilla tungsten mine in southwest Spain, it said on Tuesday April 3.The mobilization of the construction team to the site has started following the BlackRock Financial Management financing, according to the company. In February, W Resources secured a $35 million loan facility from BlackRock Financial Management to fund La Parilla.&nbs...Read More

Chinese vanadium exporters experienced increased activity over the past week, while ferro-vanadium tightness continued to bolster prices in the United States and Europe. Chinese exporters see uptick in activity levels; V2O5 offers up on limited availability European ferro-vanadium market edges upward despite slowed spot market ahead of holidaysUS ferro-vanadium market continues ascent on supply co...Read More

Chinese ferro-silicon prices continued their downward trend over the past week, pressured by ample stocks and a negative outlook for the market due to weakness in the country's steel sector. Metal Bulletin assessed the Chinese domestic spot ferro-silicon (basis 75% silicon) price at 6,100-6,500 yuan ($971-1,035) per tonne on Friday March 30, compared with 6,500-7,000 yuan per tonne a week earlier....Read More

An attempt by commodities conglomerate Vedanta Resources to acquire bankrupt Indian pipemaker Electrosteel Steels has been delayed after a challenge from another steelmaker, industry sources told Metal Bulletin on Tuesday April 3.Vedanta announced in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) on March 31 that it had been chosen as the successful applicant by the committee of creditors for Electro...Read More

Australian miner Admiralty Resources will invest around $70 million in developing the Mariposa iron ore project in Chile's northern Atacama region, now that approval has been granted by national environmental agency SEA.The company intends to produce 771,000 tonnes per year of iron ore, with an iron content of about 65%, for an 18-year period, an SEA report...Read More

Anglo American's Minas-Rio iron ore operations in Brazil are expected to remain suspended for approximately 90 days while the miner carries out a full inspection following a pipeline leak last week."Due to the length of the pipeline and ensuring the protection of the natural environment, the current expectation is that it will take approximately 90 days for the full inspection to be completed, dur...Read More

Seaborne iron ore prices weakened slightly on Tuesday April 3 amid a subdued futures market, though buying interest appears to have increased. Metal Bulletin 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $63.76 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down by $2.04 per tonne Metal Bulletin 58% Fe Premium Index: $52.09 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down by $0.40 per tonne Metal Bulletin 65% Fe Iron Ore Index: $81.50 per tonne cfr Qingd...Read More

Warnings that a cyclone could intensify off the coast of Queensland dominated sentiment in the seaborne coking coal market on Tuesday April 3, even as trading activity was robust. Metal Bulletin's cfr China premium hard coking coal index was up $0.88 per tonne to $196.66 per tonne, while the hard coking coal index was flat at $188.41 per tonne. Metal Bulletin's premium hard coking coal f...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, 190,000 tonnes of 61% Fe Pilbara Blend fines, sold at $62.79 per tonne cfr China, laycan April 13-22 (last traded at...Read More

Base metals broker Jan Rommer has left Toyota Tsusho Metals and retired as of March 29, Metal Bulletin has learned.The Swedish veteran's career in the metals industry began in 1980 at Rudolf Wolff Limited, the German metals merchant company that was a founding member of the London...Read More

Trading activity in China's hot-rolled coil market continued at a sluggish pace on Tuesday April 3 with both buyers and sellers waiting for a clearer pricing trend to emerge.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,850-3,880 yuan ($613-618) per tonne, widened downward by 10 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tianjin): 3,840-3,870 yuan per tonne, widened downward by 10 yuan per tonneHRC prices widened downwa...Read More