Zinc and lead premiums were unchanged this week, despite a consolidating London Metal Exchange zinc price and with consumers, for the most part, anticipating cheaper buying levels in the coming weeks. European, US and Asia zinc premiums stable after backwardation narrows Price drop on LME, COMEX, SHFE yet to trigger consumer buying on zinc Additional orders for lead ingotsEuropean zinc premiums re...Read More
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
Workers at Cobre Panama, the only major copper mine scheduled to come onstream in 2018, have gone on strike, operator First Quantum said on Wednesday March 14."A small number of personnel and their outside union leadership" downed tools on Friday last week, according to a company statement.Although the dominant union is not involved in the strike, development can only be carried out in two of the...Read More
Domestic prices for mesh-quality wire rod produced and delivered in Europe rose this week amid strong order books at mills, sources said on Wednesday March 14.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for domestic mesh-quality wire rod in Northern Europe narrowed upward to ?,?550-560 ($680-692) per tonne delivered on Wednesday, compared with ?,?545-560 per tonne on March 7."Our wire rod mill is ful...Read More
Wyelands Capital, the banking and financial services arm of GFG Alliance, has started a commodity inventory finance partnership with financial technology company Demica.The partnership will allow GFG to add its experience in the commodities market to Demica's working capital solutions through its proprietary technology platform, the company said on Wednesday March...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were on divergent paths at the close on Wednesday March 14, with copper leading the gains. The three-month zinc price was the worst affected today because prices were over 2% lower at the close - fresh deliveries into LME-listed warehouses in New Orleans put pressure on prices. "Zinc is down on account of another 10,000 tonne increase in LME stock ho...Read More
Zinc and lead premiums were unchanged this week, despite a consolidating London Metal Exchange zinc price and with consumers, for the most part, anticipating cheaper buying levels in the coming weeks. European, US and Asia zinc premiums stable after backwardation narrows Price drop on LME, COMEX, SHFE yet to trigger consumer buying on zinc Additional orders for lead ingotsEuropean zinc premiums re...Read More
The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is reassessing its approach to formulation, implementing and enforcing its regulations, the chairman of the regulatory body said. The regulator is committed to "right-sizing" the CFTC's regulatory footprint following years of expansive Dodd-Frank rule writing, J Christopher Giancarlo told delegates at the 43rd annual Futures Industry Association (...Read More
Arbitrage for copper, aluminium, zinc and nickel imported into China on Wednesday March 14*Copper -$120.1 (-760.56 yuan) Aluminium -$437.33 (-2,769.51 yuan) Zinc -$125.51 (-794.86 yuan) Nickel -$731.92 (-4,635.10 yuan) *Metal Bulletin calculates the physical...Read More
Brazilian steel producer CSN is negotiating the sale of its LLC subsidiary in the United States, it has said.Chief executive officer Benjamin Steinbruch said on Wednesday March 14 that CSN plans to double production at LLC following an $80 million investment, but the company has yet to decide whether it will divest the asset.The company did not unveil the name...Read More
The 25% import tariffs on steel products imposed by the United States government will have a minimal effect on exports by steelmaker CSN but could disturb the domestic market in Brazil, the flat steel producer said on Wednesday March 14.The company exported 350,000 tonnes of steel products to the US last year, which was 6% of its total output, chief executive officer Benjamin Steinbruch said. But...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
Key data from the Wednesday March 14 pricing session in Europe. Ferro-titanium 70% (max 4.5% Al) $ per kg, delivered duty-paid in EuropeTodayPreviousChange to midpoint of rangeMidpoint % change 4.8-5.404.8-5.3-0.051% Titanium scrap turnings, unprocessed (max 0.5% Sn) $ per lb, cif European ports Titanium scrap turnings, unprocessed (0.5-2% Sn) $ per lb, cif European ports...Read More
The following Metal Bulletin noble alloys and ores prices changed on Wednesday March 14:The following Metal Bulletin noble alloys and ores prices changed on Wednesday March 14:Noble alloys Molybdenum Europe drummed molybdic oxide, $/lb: $12.85-12.95 per lb from $12.90-13.10 Ferro-molybdenum basis...Read More
The following Metal Bulletin minor metals prices changed on Wednesday March 14:Minor metals Bismuth MB free market, $/lb: $5.20-5.40 per lb from $5.10-5.40 Cadmium MB free market min 99.99%, cents/lb: 150-170 per lb from 145-165 Cobalt MB free market high...Read More
Atlas Iron is moving into the export market for manganese ore as prices continue to rally, the company said.The Australian iron ore producer will purchase and export up to 100,000 tonnes of manganese lump over a four-month period High-grade manganese ore prices have gained 24% since the start of 2018 on soaring demand from China. Metal Bulletin's 44% manganese ore index, cif Tianjin rose 14.5% in...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
The latest metal markets news and price moves to start the North American day on Wednesday March 14. Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were higher across the board this morning, following better-than-expected data releases from China. The base metals are building on Monday's rally with nickel hitting above $14,020 per tonne for the first time in March, while copper recovered back abo...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