As the ferro-alloys community prepares to gather in Lisbon for a busy few days of meetings and contract negotiations, Fastmarkets outlines some of the key topics likely to dominate discussions at this year's International Ferro-alloys Conference, on November 11-13.
Is the ferro-vanadium mating season nearing completion?What promises to be a busy few days in Lisbon for purveyors of ferro-alloys may end up uneventful for ferro-vanadium suppliers because many of the larger long-term contract negotiations have been already been settled.Supply concerns fueled speedy negotiations, with consumers eager to secure volumes for the upcoming year in what is expected to a strong year for vanadium consumption, with little supply increase expected.Several major suppliers were either completely booked or nearly sold out of their allotted contract volumes for 2019. The pressure on consumers to secure requirements early was also believed to have allowed for lower discount levels overall.Vanadium market in a frenzyAlthough many of the long-term contract negotiations have been settled already, vanadium still promises to be a hot topic. The material has caught the attention of even the most casual observer, with its meteoric rise over the past year.European ferro-vanadium and...