The European ferro-silicon market has risen over the past week to a range not seen for more than six months, sources told Fastmarkets on Monday November 23.
And with tight domestic availability and no likelihood of any significant volume of imported material for some time to come, there was expectation in the market of further price increases in the coming weeks.
Underscoring market sentiment for an extended price rally was a strong showing in industrial demand in China, which has weathered the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic better than Western countries that are now trying to cope with a second wave of infections.
In the longer term, China was likely to lead the economic recovery in 2021 due to various economic stimulus measures introduced from the second quarter of this year and intended to counteract the economic downturn in the aftermath of the virus outbreak.
Since then, the remedial measures have encouraged firm demand for steel and ferro-alloys in China....