Iron ore exports from Western Australia's Port of Port Hedland rose 5% on the year to the highest ever in December, according to data released by the Pilbara Ports Authority on Tuesday January 9.The port shipped 46.19 million tonnes of the steelmaking raw material last month, compared with 43.94 million tonnes in December 2016. The volume is also 11.7% higher than November exports of 41.35 million...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. ...Read More

Iron ore prices rose above $78 per tonne cfr China on Tuesday January 9 due to a potential risk of a severe cyclone that will impact Western Australia, according to a warning from the Australian Bureau of Meteorology. Metal Bulletin's 62% Fe Iron Ore Index Today: $78.47 per tonne cfr Qingdao Daily change: up by $0.73 per tonne cfr Month-to-date average: $76.54 per tonne Metal Bulletin's 58% Fe Pre...Read More

Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were on divergent paths this morning, Tuesday January 9, with only copper and nickel continuing to edge higher. The three-month copper price was up $30, targeting the $7,200 per tonne barrier. Copper is finding some support this morning from concerns over constrained supply stemming from tightening regulations in China over imported scrap and looming...Read More

Arbitrage for copper, aluminium, zinc and nickel imported into China on Tuesday January 9*Copper -$102.56 (-668.60 yuan) Aluminium -$431.45 (-2,812.75 yuan) Zinc -$178.48 (-1,163.54 yuan) Nickel -$561.47 (-3,660.41 yuan) *The physical arbitrage numbers...Read More

China's prices for hot-rolled coil edged up on Tuesday January 9 on a rebound in the paper market, although the upside was restricted by weak buying interest.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 4,240-4,280 yuan ($652-659) per tonne, up by 10-20 yuan per tonne Northern China (Tianjin) : 4,040-4,070 yuan per tonne, up 10 yuan per tonneThe paper market remained strong in the night trading session...Read More

TD Securities' Bart Melek has won LBMA's annual precious metals forecast survey, the LBMA announced today.Melek's forecast for the average gold price in 2017 of $1,256, was just $1.15 below the actual average...Read More

The latest metal markets news and price moves to start the North American day on Tuesday January 9.Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were on divergent paths this morning, with only copper and nickel continuing to edge higher.Here is how the LME base metals complex looked at 11.59am London time:For a snapshot of exchange news, check out our live...Read More

Base metals prices trading on the London Metal Exchange are generally higher this morning, Tuesday January 9, with copper ($7,159 per tonne), aluminium, nickel and zinc up by between 0.2% and 0.5%, while tin prices are little changed and lead prices are bucking the trend with a 0.3% decline to $2,598 per tonne.Volume has been average, with 7,103 lots traded as of 07.23 am London time. This follows...Read More

The spot gold price managed a slight bounce during Asian morning trading session on Tuesday January 9, but expectations of more US interest rate increases this year continue to underpin the dollar, capping any significant gains in the yellow metal.The spot gold price was recently quoted at $1,318.90-1,319.35 per oz, up by $1.25 from the previous trading day's close. Trade has ranged from $1,316.23...Read More

By Ira EpsteinStrong US Dollar and rising interest rates pressure gold lower.https://www.iraepstein.com/ Read More

Brazilian exports of carbon steel slab and billet increased in 2017, according to the country's foreign trade ministry, MDIC.Exports of carbon steel slab reached 7.3 million tonnes in 2017, up 23.49% from the 5.91 million tonnes exported in 2016, according to the figures released late last week.The US was the largest...Read More

RAPAPORT... G? 1/4 belin Gem Lab has partnered with developer Everledger to establish a blockchain digital ledger for colored gemstones. The Provenance Proof Blockchain tracks gemstones throughout theirlifespan until they reach the end consumer, the Swiss-based lab said Tuesday. G? 1/4 belin plans to implement itssystem across all segments along the supply chain, including miners,dealers, cut...Read More

Base and precious metals miner Hudbay Minerals (TSX, NYSE:HBM) has agreed to buy a series of mining properties in southern Peru near its Constancia copper mine, which will see the Canadian company expanding its footprint in the country, the world's second largest producer of the red metal.The Toronto-based miner has now the option to buy a 100% interest in the Caballito (formerly Katanga) and Mar...Read More

Brazil's Vale (NYSE:VALE), the world's largest iron ore and nickel miner, has officially closed the sale of its fertilizer business to US-based Mosaic Co. (NYSE:MOS), the No.1 producer of phosphate fertilizer, in a deal worth about $1.4 billion, considerably less than the $2.5bn originally estimated.The transaction, part of Vale's strategy to cut debt and focus on its core businesses, excludes t...Read More

Alberta-based Osum Oil Sands Corp. said that, by the end of the year, it wants to double production at the Orion SAGD project located near Cold Lake.Orion is the company's sole operating asset. The junior purchased it from Shell in 2014 for $325 million and it currently produces 9,000 barrels per day.In October 2017, just one month after completing its 1,500-barrels per day Phase 2A expansion at t...Read More

The Democratic Republic of Congo's state-owned miner, G?(C)camines, is calling the government to update the 16-year-old mining code, arguing it currently benefits foreign firms more than local producers or the country itself.The company, which is heavily indebted and has consistently failed to meet production targets as of late, said in a statement it was evident the World Bank-supported Mining C...Read More

The Republican-controlled Federal Energy Regulatory Commission or FERC unexpectedly and unanimously rejected Energy Secretary Rick Perry's plan to boost nuclear plants and slow down the closure of coal-powered plants.According to Perry, the US' power grid would become vulnerable if more coal-fired power plants were to close down, a common occurrence in past years as the rise of natural gas and ren...Read More

A tractor-trailer carrying uranium concentrate or yellowcake to Cameco's Blind River refinery was involved in a minor traffic accident on Sunday. The incident took place on the Trans-Canada Highway (Highway 17) between Wawa and Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.Although Cameco says the contracted transportation company is investigating to determine the cause of the accident, local newspaper Sault Star rep...Read More

Recently formed Equinox Gold (TSX-V:EQX) announced that its board of directors approved $146 million for the full-scale construction at the Aurizona Gold mine, located in the Maranh??o state of north-eastern Brazil.With the idea of pouring gold in late 2018, the company says it has already spent $25 million advancing detailed engineering work, raising the existing tailings facility, refurbishing e...Read More