SHANGHAI, Jan 29 (SMM) - Copper: The physical market has been sluggish with the approaching Chinese New Year dragging copper prices. However, a weak US dollar would prevent them from dropping dramatically. We expect the SHFE 1803 contract to trade at 53,000-53,500 yuan/mt today and the LME copper at $7,060-7,110/mt. Spot discounts are seen stable at 160-100 yuan/mt.Aluminium: We see LME alumi...Read More

Zinc was the best performer on the London Metal Exchange at the close on Monday January 29, while the other metals diverged.Zinc's three-month price was up $72, or 2%, to $3,550 per tonne, mostly on the back of supply-side factors. Tighter stocks on the LME and adverse weather in zinc-producing provinces of Northwestern China, which makes it difficult to transport zinc out of the region, have...Read More

Commodity markets were mixed on the morning of Monday January 29, with Comex copper picking up a little buying in start-of-week trading.Copper for March settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange inched up 0.3 cents or 0.1% to trade recently at $3.2020 per lb. Prices have been volatile over the past week, with the weaker dollar - it remains around its lowest in more than...Read More

Iron ore prices softened but remained at the $74-per-tonne-cfr-China mark on Monday January 29 amid declining futures and a subdued steel market in ChinaMetal Bulletin's 62% Fe Iron Ore Index Today: $74.33 per tonne cfr Qingdao Daily change: down by $0.07 per tonne Month-to-date average: $76.12 per tonne Metal Bulletin's 58% Fe Premium Index Today: $60.70 per tonne...Read More

Peter KrauthGold prices are nearing a two-year high, and I didn't think that would be possible this early in 2018…But the key driver of rising gold prices continues to be the sinking dollar, and the Trump administration's mixed signals on the dollar are helping push it down.Here's what I mean…The U.S. Dollar Index (DXY) fell down to 90 on Tuesday, just before U.S. Treasury Secretary St...Read More

Gold prices have risen 5% in the last six weeks, breaking $1,350 an ounce for the first time since June 2016.Money Morning Resource Specialist Peter Krauth says this recent rise is the beginning of a breakout for the precious metal, one that has massive profit potential for the individual investor.Peter's enthusiasm has given us our gold price prediction for 2018. According to Peter, gains of near...Read More

CIS export billet prices continued to trend downward in the Black Sea market in the week ended Monday January 29, with buying activity remaining low and customers expecting more price cuts in the near term.Traders were also said to have built up high levels of stock at ports in recent weeks, which also served to restrict buying activity.Metal Bulletin's weekly export CIS Billet Index dropped to $4...Read More

Zinc miners hope to halve the annual concentrate Treatment Charges (TCs) in initial offer prices to smelters this year, while the market prepares for what could be one of the most vibrantly contested negotiations for years.Miners have offered smelters outside of China a flat TC. This is a discount on the London Metal Exchange price for zinc paid to smelters for converting concentrate to metal. Thi...Read More

European alloy surcharges for January deliveries of grade-316 cold-rolled (CR) stainless steel sheet have risen sharply month on month amid higher nickel and molybdenum costs.The February assessment for molybdenum-containing 2 mm grade-316 CR sheet - compiled by Metal Bulletin based on data released by Outokumpu, Acerinox and Aperam - rose ?,?99-155 ($123.03-192.62) per tonne to ?,?1,923-1,963 per...Read More

Treatment charges (TCs) for spot market zinc concentrates dropped to multiyear lows while Chinese smelters re-entered the market for tonnages in January.TCs for lead concentrates also remain depressed, with supply shortages restricting the amount of material on offer and traded lots shrinking.Zinc concentrate TCs dropped $10 per tonne over January to a $10-30 per tonne level. Direct trades were re...Read More

Codelco has reached an early wage deal with unionized workers at its Andina division, the Chilean copper producer said on Saturday January 27. The agreement, signed with Andina's two trade unions, includes a 1% pay rise and an end-of-negotiation bonus of 8.2 million Chilean pesos ($13,592) per worker, Codelco said. The state-run miner added that the deal also includes improved benefits and variabl...Read More

There is more to excite the metals industry than the batteries boom, argues Lord Copper, with the global economy's gradual emergence from the 2008 recession boding well for metal demand. Talk to anybody about metals these days and they are almost guaranteed to turn the conversation to batteries, electric vehicles and the metals that produce the motive power. Tesla's Elon Musk certainly garners far...Read More

Base metals on the London Metal Exchange began the week in positive territory during London morning trading on Monday January 29, with nickel up over 2%.Nickel was the best performer, up $305 per tonne, or 2.2%, while zinc was also strong, up $59.50 or 1.7%."Metals are trending up, but it's largely trend flowing behavior, continuing the uptrend from last week," said Oliver Nugent, commodities stra...Read More

Brazilian slab producer Companhia Sider??rgica do Pec?(C)m (CSP) announced on Monday January 29 that its chief executive officer, Eduardo Parente, will resign from his position and join the company's board of directors.Parente has been the steelmaker's CEO since October 2016, when he replaced S?(C)rgio Leite.Parente will remain in his position until a new...Read More

Mexico's output of crude steel increased by 6.20% in 2017, compared with the previous year, to 20 million tonnes, according to national steel association Canacero.Most of the increase was due to a growth of 32% in the production of semi-finished steel products, Canacero said. Meanwhile, finished steel production increased by 0.10%...Read More

Oman's Jindal Shadeed, part of India's Jindal Steel & Power (JSPL), produced.420,000 tonnes of crude steel in October-December 2017, the company said on Thursday January 25.This was up quarter-on-quarter by 34.48% from 310,000 tonnes produced in the third quarter of the year, it added.Its rebar production reached 240,000 tonnes in the fourth quarter of 2017, and...Read More

China's domestic rebar prices continued to fall on Monday January 29 on thin demand. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,820-3,890 yuan ($604-616) per tonne, down 10-30 yuan per tonne Northern China (Beijing): 3,900-3,940 yuan per tonne, narrowed downward by 10 yuan per tonne Most construction projects have stopped work due to bad weather as well as because the Chinese New Year is just a little o...Read More

TSX VENTURE: AGBwww.atlanticgoldcorporation.com Mr. Steven Dean reports: Maintains industry lowest quartile AISC over new Life of Mine at CAD$692 / oz. Au (USD$555 / oz. Au) VANCOUVER, Jan. 29, 2018 /CNW/ - Atlantic Gold Corporation (TSX-V: AGB) ("Atlantic" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the results of the Phase 2 Life of Mine Expansion Pre-Feasibility Study (the "Study"), led and prepar...Read More

NASDAQ: MPVDwww.mountainprovince.com Mr. Jonathan Comerford reports:TORONTO and NEW YORK, Jan. 29, 2018 /CNW/ - Mountain Province Diamonds Inc. ("Mountain Province") (TSX and NASDAQ:  MPVD) and Kennady Diamonds Inc. ("Kennady") (TSX-V: KDI) are pleased to announce that they have entered into a definitive arrangement agreement ("Arrangement Agreement") pursuant to which Mountain Province will...Read More

TSX VENTURE: ORGwww.orcagold.com Mr. Richard Clark reports:VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Jan. 29, 2018) - Orca Gold Inc. (TSX VENTURE:ORG) ("Orca" or the "Company") is pleased to announce a new Mineral Resource Estimate for the Company's Block 14 Gold Project in the Republic of the Sudan.Highlights*The updated Mineral Resource Estimate of the Galat Sufar South ("GSS") and Wadi Doum d...Read More