Comex copper prices hit a multi-week high in Wednesday morning trading in the United States after the publication of positive Chinese data.Copper for May settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange climbed 4.7 cents or 1.5% to trade recently at $3.1850 per lb Earlier this morning, China's industrial production grew 7.2% year on year in January-February 2018, a full percent...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange are for the most part consolidating this morning, Wednesday March 14, although copper and lead prices are showing gains of 0.5% and 0.3% respectively, with the former at $6,984 per tonne.Volume has been average with 7,085 lots traded as of 07.06am London time. This follows a day when most prices rebounded on Tuesday, with the complex closing up by an...Read More
Domestic prices for cold-rolled coil (CRC) in the EU have gone unchanged over the past week due to a limited market, sources told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday March 14.Buyers have been in "wait-and-see" mode until the price trend becomes clear."The mills are sold out and buyers have enough material," an Italian trader said. "Because the third-quarter-production prices for hot-rolled coil [HRC]...Read More
Prices trend in the market for hot-rolled coil (HRC) in the EU remain positive despite weak market activity and stable prices, sources told Metal Bulletin this week.Despite the limited trading activity, prices are not expected to go down, according to market sources.European mills have already almost sold out their second-quarter production material, but have not announced new prices yet. The new...Read More
Italian steel re-rollers have been trying to achieve price increases for heavy plate products following the recent rise in slab costs, sources told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday March 14.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for domestic grade-S235JR heavy steel plate in Southern Europe was ?,?580-590 ($717-729) per tonne ex-works on Wednesday, unchanged over the week.The lower end of the assessm...Read More
Prices for steel beams in Europe could come under downward pressure in the coming weeks because of waning demand, despite mills plotting further price rises, sources told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday March 14."Demand for beams is not strong, which means that we are selling below our budget in terms of tonnes," one Northern European distributor said.Stockholders continue to hold bloated volumes of b...Read More
Prices for hollow steel sections in Northern Europe have fallen by ?,?5 ($6) per tonne this week, with some mills accepting lower bids to secure orders, market participants told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday March 14.Meanwhile, Southern European prices widened upward by ?,?5 per tonne, with the large Italian mills being more successful in driving up their offer prices, sources said.Metal Bulletin's...Read More
Weakening demand for rebar in the Turkish domestic and export markets has kept Turkish steel producers out of the deep-sea scrap markets, sources said on Wednesday March 14.Turkish steel producers paused their deep-sea scrap purchases after the Section 232 import tariffs were officially signed into effect in the United States, adding a 25% import duty on all steel product imports, exempting only C...Read More
Iron ore prices rebounded by close to $2 per tonne on Wednesday March 14 after demand picked up in the wake of prices falling below $70 per tonne cfr China a day earlier. Metal Bulletin's 62% Fe Iron Ore Index Today: $71.64 per tonne cfr Qingdao Daily change: up by $1.86 per tonne Month-to-date average: $74.13 per tonne Metal Bulletin's 58% Fe Premium Index Today: $57.56 per tonne cfr Qingdao Dail...Read More
The seaborne iron ore market appears to have regained some stability on Wednesday March 14 after a two-week decline, with a few big trading companies bottom-fishing for high-grade products after prices fell below $70 per tonne cfr China.Key drivers Sources at several major trading companies said they were looking to buy April-delivery cargoes of Pilbara Blend fines and lumps as well as a few for d...Read More
Iranian exporters of semi-finished steel products have continued to push for higher prices after successfully selling billet and slab volumes in recent weeks.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for Iranian billet exports widened at both ends of the range to $515-530 per tonne fob on Wednesday March 14, against $518-520 per tonne fob a week earlier.The country's largest billet exporter, Khouze...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices were unchanged on Wednesday March 14, with high inventory levels offsetting the effects of a recovery in the futures market and a pick-up in trading activity.Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,790-3,850 yuan ($599-609) per tonne, unchangedNorthern China (Beijing): 3,900-3,930 yuan per tonne, unchangedRebar futures charted a recover in the last 30 minutes of the morn...Read More
Prices for hollow steel sections in Northern Europe have fallen by ?,?5 ($6) per tonne this week, with some mills accepting lower bids to secure orders, market participants told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday March 14.Meanwhile, Southern European prices widened upward by ?,?5 per tonne, with the large Italian mills being more successful in driving up their offer prices, sources said.Metal Bulletin's...Read More
Turkish pipe export prices have remained stable this month, despite sluggish demand especially in the Middle East region, sources said on Wednesday March 14.Metal Bulletin's monthly price assessment for EN10219-standard, grade-S235 tube, with 2mm wall thickness, was $680-690 per tonne fob on March 14, unchanged month-on-month.Turkish pipe producers...Read More
UK long steel producer British Steel has won a contract to supply German railways operator Deutsche Bahn with 20,000 tonnes per year of rail, the company said on Wednesday March 14.In order to produce the 120-meter-long rail segments required by Deutsche Bahn, British Steel last year invested ?1 million ($1.39 million) to enhance its rail and sections mill in Scunthorpe, in eastern England.The tw...Read More
China's ferrous futures picked up on Wednesday March 14 amid the release of data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showing an increase in the country's crude steel output in January to February.Futures closing prices - morning session Shanghai Futures Exchange May rebar: 3,736 yuan ($590.60) per tonne, up 46 yuan per tonne May hot-rolled coil: 3,855 yuan per tonne, up 52 yuan per tonne...Read More
China's crude steel output as well as its finished steel production increased during the first two months of 2018.The country produced a total of 136.82 million tonnes of crude steel over the January-February period, up 5.9% from a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Wednesday March 14. The bureau did not release separate statistics for either month.China's finished...Read More
Prices for steel beams in Europe could come under downward pressure in the coming weeks because of waning demand, despite mills plotting further price rises, sources told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday March 14."Demand for beams is not strong, which means that we are selling below our budget in terms of tonnes," one Northern European distributor said.Stockholders continue to hold bloated volumes of b...Read More
Prices for hollow steel sections in Northern Europe have fallen by ?,?5 ($6) per tonne this week, with some mills accepting lower bids to secure orders, market participants told Metal Bulletin on Wednesday March 14.Meanwhile, Southern European prices widened upward by ?,?5 per tonne, with the large Italian mills being more successful in driving up their offer prices, sources said.Metal Bulletin's...Read More
Teck Resources and Asian smelters have agreed to cut annual lead concentrate treatment charges (TCs) by 28% in 2018 supply contracts, sources with knowledge of the deals told Metal Bulletin.The deals bring lead concentrate TCs, fees paid to smelters for the costs of processing concentrates into metal, down to $99 per tonne from $138 per tonne last year. Market sources also noted a drop in containe...Read More