The latest bids, offers and deals in the global markets for steel billet, steel slab and bloom. Latest transaction: billetBilletCIS, export, billet, offered...Read More

Key data from the January 3 pricing session in Europe. Ferro-titanium 70% (max 4.5% Al) $ per kg, delivered duty-paid in EuropeKey drivers: - Ferro-titanium prices were unchanged this week, with business concluded across the range. However, sellers have upped their offers for subsequent inquiries with little free...Read More

Concerns over supplies for the year ahead and a strong purchasing appetite from traders and mills continued to provide momentum to noble alloys prices in the first few days of January. Molybdic oxide prices staged the most impressive gains in the (usually quiet) first days of the year, jumping to $10.70-11 per lb, in-warehouse Rotterdam, on Wednesday January 3. Prices were assessed up 10.2% f...Read More

The Chinese vanadium market may turn to a deficit this year, underpinned by revised standards for the tensile strength of rebar products and a ban on vanadium slag imports, sources told Metal Bulletin.The new standard proposes eliminating 335MPa-tensile strength rebar and replacing it with 600MPa-tensile strength rebar that will have greater earthquake resistance, which will mean produce...Read More

Brazilian ferrous scrap export volumes fell by 3.64% in 2017, according to figures released by national foreign trade ministry MDIC on Thursday January 4.Shipments of ferrous scrap amounted to 589,041 tonnes last year, compared with 611,266 tonnes in 2016.Bangladesh was...Read More

Brazilian pig iron export volumes increased by 4.59% in 2017 on an annual basis, mostly due to improved demand from the United States and Italy.Shipments totaled 2.28 million tonnes, compared with 2.18 million tonnes in 2016, according to figures released by the country's foreign trade ministry, MDIC, on Thursday January 4.Brazil exported around 1 million tonnes of pig iron to the US last year, up...Read More

Brazilian iron ore export volumes to China increased by 15.75% year-on-year in 2017, amid higher sales prices, Metal Bulletin has learnt.Shipment totals came to 217.94 million tonnes, against 214.56 million tonnes in 2016, according to figures released by Brazilian foreign trade ministry MDIC on Thursday January 4.Over the same period, the average fob iron ore export price to China rose to $47.67....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

The seaborne iron ore market reported higher prices on Thursday January 4 despite a big drop in spot rebar prices in east China.Key driversChina's steel markets continued to soften during the day with spot rebar prices in the eastern region tumbling 170-180 yuan ($26-28) per tonne as bad weather dampened downstream demand.The benchmark iron ore futures contract picked up in the afternoon after dec...Read More

A new report by BMI research says that refined nickel prices will continue to lose steam in the coming months due to increased supply from Indonesia, subdued demand from China and fading overly-optimistic demand expectations from electric vehicle production."We have kept our nickel price forecast at $10,000/tonne for 2018 and expect prices to head lower over our forecast period from 2017-2021 as t...Read More

Prince Harry's recent engagement combined with the massive success of Netflix's series The Crown has reignited people's and media's interest in the British monarchy.This is probably why newspapers and news sites around the UK paid special attention this week to the fact that later in 2018 the Clogau St David's mine, located near Bontddu in North Wales, might reopen after two decades of inactivity....Read More

Iron ore prices rose above $76 per tonne cfr China on Thursday January 4 despite a subdued Chinese steel market.Metal Bulletin's 62% Fe Iron Ore Index Today: $76.54 per tonne cfr QingdaoDaily change: up by $1.57 per tonneMonth-to-date average: $75.41 per tonneMetal Bulletin's 58% Fe Premium Index Today: $61.94 per tonne cfr QingdaoDaily change:...Read More

Vancouver-based ML Gold Corp.(TSXV: MLG) announced that is has started a winter drilling program on the Stars property, located 40 kilometres south-west of Houston, British Columbia. The company acquired the mine in November from Pacific Empire Minerals Corp. and Divitiae Resources.In a press release, ML Gold informed that it has mobilized a diamond drill rig and drilling is underway. The program...Read More

Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were universally higher during morning trading on Thursday January 4, with copper and nickel climbing more than 1%.After pausing to consolidate December's gains, the three-month copper price has gained more over $100 per tonne. Copper closed 2017 up 30% and is well placed to move higher this year."Most metals prices are making moderate...Read More

Arbitrage for copper, aluminium, zinc and nickel imported into China on Thursday January 4*Copper-$128.62 (-838.43 yuan) Aluminium-$499.71 (-3,257.51 yuan) Zinc -$157.06 (-1,023.85 yuan) Nickel-$436.40 (-2,844.83 yuan) *The physical arbitrage numbers are calculated daily by Metal Bulletin using SHFE...Read More

The drive for greater transparency in financial markets will power into fifth gear from the start of January as the second iteration of Europe's Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II) comes into effect. MiFID II - the European Union's first regulatory update to the directive since 2004 - will kick in on Wednesday January 3 and is designed to make European markets safer and more tran...Read More

Base metals traded on the London Metal Exchange are for the most part little changed this morning, Thursday January 4, apart from nickel and copper prices that are up by 0.8% and 0.6%, with the latter at $7,220 per tonne. Volume has picked up with 9,663 lots traded as of 07:01 am London time. This follows a diverse performance on Wednesday that saw copper, aluminium, nickel and zinc close dow...Read More

Gold prices were down in the Asian morning trading session on Thursday January 4 on strong US economic data and the release of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) minutes overnight. The spot gold price was recently quoted at $1,307.20/1,307.55 per oz, down $3.55 from the previous trading day's close. Trade has ranged from $1,305.20 to $1,311.20 per oz so far today.Minutes from the FOMC Decemb...Read More

https://www.economist.com/They offer steady jobs, but some miners would rather hunt stones on their ownAT THE bottom of a muddy basin surrounded by verdant mountains, Dora Alicia Hern??ndez combs through black sludge and rock in the faint hope of finding an emerald valuable enough to lift her out of poverty. "All we need is one shiny stone," she says, as rainclouds smother the mountains overhead....Read More

East Asian stainless steel prices maintained their upward trend over the past week amid gains in China's domestic market and costlier nickel.Metal Bulletin's assessment of prices for benchmark 304 stainless 2mm cold-rolled coil was $2,150-2,200 per tonne cif East Asian ports for the week ended Wednesday January 3, tightening upward by $50 per tonne from $2,100-2,200 per tonne a week earlier.Metal...Read More