Turkish steel producers have extended their silence in the deep-sea scrap markets amid weak demand for their finished steel products in both the export and domestic markets, sources said on Thursday March 15.The mills were expected to book more cargoes for April, but they stepped back from the deep-sea market late last week after Section 232 import tariffs were officially signed into effect in the...Read More
Iron ore prices edged up on Thursday March 15 amid improved sentiment following the release of data showing a drop in steel inventories in the Chinese market. Metal Bulletin's 62% Fe Iron Ore Index Today: $72.11 per tonne cfr Qingdao Daily change: up by $0.47 per tonne Month-to-date average: $73.95 per tonne Metal Bulletin's 58% Fe Premium Index Today: $57.71...Read More
The seaborne iron ore market maintained its stability on Thursday March 15 amid a slight drop in steel inventories in China, with premiums for index-linked cargoes of 62% Fe Australian fines failing to rise as much as expected.Key drivers The slight drop in steel inventories gave the market some optimism about demand from downstream industries beginning its recovery. According to a local informati...Read More
Turkish import and export billet prices have increased, amid strong local demand and tightening supplies in the CIS region, sources said on Thursday March 15.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for billet imports into Turkey was $560-570 per tonne cfr, up from $545-550 per tonne.There were several billet sales from the...Read More
Steel billet import prices and domestic rebar prices in Egypt increased again in the week ended Thursday March 15, with demand being better compared with previous weeks.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for Egyptian billet imports rose to $550-565 per tonne cfr on Thursday from $530-545 per tonne cfr previously.An unconfirmed quantity of...Read More
Active trading and gains in the futures market failed to push up China's domestic rebar prices on Thursday March 15, with sellers more anxious about de-stocking. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,790-3,850 yuan ($600-609) per tonne, unchanged Northern China (Beijing): 3,900-3,930 yuan per tonne, unchanged Buyers stepped up their procurement rates slightly following gains in the futures market d...Read More
Norwegian ferro-silicon producer Finnfjord Smelteverk will cut about 5,000 tonnes of production between April and June of this year because of planned maintenance to its furnaces, according to an industry source.The company, which has its plant in the north of the country, operates three furnaces, one with capacity for 20,000 tonnes per year and two with capacities for 40,000 tpy."Maintenance shou...Read More
Spot prices for European molybdic oxide and ferro-molybdenum have eased in Metal Bulletin's midweek assessment, with dealers booking profits after a market rally for much of the year to date.Market participants expect the move to persist in the near term, with lower spot prices already being offered and expected to be booked soon, they said.Oxide prices have dropped on around 140 tonnes of reporte...Read More
Japan's Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Metal Corporation will expand its global presence in special steels markets by acquiring Swedish special steels maker Ovako and making Japanese steel maker Sanyo Special Steel its subsidiary.The major Japanese steel producer intends to acquire Ovako from private equity fund Triton in the first half of the 2018 fiscal year subject to approval from the competition a...Read More
The number of new passenger car sales in the EU increased by 4.33% year-on-year in February 2018, making it the second month of consecutive growth.New car sales in Europe totaled 1,125,397 units in February, compared with 1,078,721 vehicles sold in the corresponding month of 2017, the...Read More
Global crude stainless steel production totaled 48.08 million tonnes in 2017, according to figures released by the International Stainless Steel Forum (ISSF) on Thursday March 15.This was up 5.79% from the revised figure of 45.45 million tonnes produced in 2016.Production in China was 25.77 million tonnes in 2017, up 4.74% from 24.61 million tonnes in 2016.Output in Asia -...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mostly lower at the close on Thursday March 15, apart from zinc and lead.A stronger dollar and a hesitant market saw copper and nickel both fall significantly, with the three-month copper price closing $68.50 per tonne lower. The red metal is finding it hard to push back and stabilize above $7,000 per tonne and has undone all of Wednesday's gain...Read More
Turkish import and export billet prices have increased, amid strong local demand and tightening supplies in the CIS region, sources said on Thursday March 15.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for billet imports into Turkey was $560-570 per tonne cfr, up from $545-550 per tonne.There were several billet sales from the...Read More
Major international mining companies operating in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have resigned from the country's Chamber of Commerce ahead of a month of talks with the government to resolve their dispute over the new mining code. A legal and technical team representing Randgold Resources, AngloGold Ashanti, Glencore PLC, Ivanhoe Mines, Gold Mountain International/Zijin Mining Group, MMG (...Read More
SHANGHAI, Mar 15 (SMM) – Nonferrous metals slid across the board today as zinc led losses with a drop of more than 1%. Nickel fell 0.8%, tin dipped 0.7% and copper edged down.The ferrous complex saw some gains today as coking coal rose 1.6%. Rebar, hot-rolled coil, and iron ore gained over 1%, and coke inched up.Copper: The SHFE 1805 contract slumped after it reached a high of 52,400 yuan/mt...Read More
SHANGHAI, Mar 15 (SMM) – Nonferrous metals slid across the board today as zinc led losses with a drop of more than 1%. Nickel fell 0.8%, tin dipped 0.7% and copper edged down.The ferrous complex saw some gains today as coking coal rose 1.6%. Rebar, hot-rolled coil, and iron ore gained over 1%, and coke inched up.Copper: The SHFE 1805 contract slumped after it reached a high of 52,400 yuan/mt...Read More
SHANGHAI, Mar 15 (SMM) – Nonferrous metals slid across the board today as zinc led losses with a drop of more than 1%. Nickel fell 0.8%, tin dipped 0.7% and copper edged down.The ferrous complex saw some gains today as coking coal rose 1.6%. Rebar, hot-rolled coil, and iron ore gained over 1%, and coke inched up.Copper: The SHFE 1805 contract slumped after it reached a high of 52,400 yuan/mt...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were mixed this morning. S&P 500 futures were unchanged in pre-opening trade.Index futures were virtually unchanged following release of economic news at 8:30 AM EST. Consensus for Weekly Jobless Claims was a slip to 230,000 from 231,000 last week. Actual was a slip to 226,000. Consensus for March Philly Fed Index was a drop to 23.3 from 25.8 in February. Actual was a...Read More
Turkish steel producers have extended their silence in the deep-sea scrap markets amid weak demand for their finished steel products in both the export and domestic markets, sources said on Thursday March 15.The mills were expected to book more cargoes for April, but they stepped back from the deep-sea market late last week after Section 232 import tariffs were officially signed into effect in the...Read More
SHANGHAI, Mar 15 (SMM) – Norilsk nickel in the Shanghai market was offered at a discount of 400-500 yuan/mt against the Wuxi Stainless Steel Exchange 1804 contract on the morning of Thursday March 15.Jinchuan nickel was offered at a discount of 100-0 yuan/mt, and Jinchuan nickel plate was offered at 103,100 yuan/mt, SMM learned.As nickel prices remained high, traders sold actively while down...Read More