Steel billet import prices in Egypt increased in the week to Thursday November 8, but demand for rebar was still weak in the country.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel billet imported into Egypt was $480-490 per tonne cfr on Thursday, compared with $477-480 per tonne cfr last week.Billet producers in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) increased their prices because of the hig...Read More

Botswana Diamonds has concluded a mining contract with Palaeo Minerals, covering both bulk sampling activities and future full-scale mining, at the Thorny River project, in South Africa.Palaeo is an experienced mining contractor that operates in South Africa and Zimbabwe.AdvertisementThe contract will enable Botswana Diamonds to self-fund the Thorny River project from bulk sampling through to mine...Read More

The latest news and price moves to start the Asian day on Friday November 9.London Metal Exchange prices for tin. lead and zinc stepped higher at the close of trading on Thursday November 8, with tin the most significant gainer. Read more in our live futures report.Here is how prices looked at the close of trading:Hydro's Alunorte alumina refinery in Brazil will continue to run at 50% capacity fol...Read More

RAPAPORT... Global demand for gold jewelry rose 6% year on year to 535.7tonnes in the third quarter, as reduced prices drove consumer purchasing, theWorld Gold Council (WGC) said. Orders for gold jewelry in India climbed 10% to 148.8 tonnesin the three months ending September 30, as the price of gold dipped to itslowest level since January. In addition, the sharp growth was also due to relati...Read More

RAPAPORT... A rare Kashmir sapphire necklace could set a new auctionworld record when it goes under the hammer at Christie's Hong Kong sale onNovember 27.The Peacock Necklace - which will lead the Magnificent Jewels auction- contains 21 cushion-cut Kashmir sapphires weighing a total of 109.08 carats.The piece, with its 10.56-carat center sapphire, is estimated at $12 million to$15 million, ma...Read More

The London Metal Exchange has adjusted its fee structure after feedback was received from a market-wide consultation begun in August, issuing amendments to existing product fees in addition to its new services, it said in a note to members on Monday November 5.Following the decision indefinitely to maintain discounted short-dated and medium-dated carry fees, the LME has introduced new fees for exi...Read More

Comex copper prices fell to a one-week low on Thursday morning in the US amid a stronger dollar and a lack of fresh catalysts.The copper price for December settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange declined 2.75 cents to $2.7270 per lb. Earlier in intraday trading, the contract touched a low of $2.7030 per lb, the weakest...Read More

Global mining and metals deal appetite could be poised for a rebound in the next 12 months, according to a report by consultancy group EY. The 19th EY Global Capital Confidence Barometer (CCB) found that 58% of global mining executive respondents intend to pursue mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in the next 12 months, compared with an average of 46% across all sectors. The focus in 2018 is shifting...Read More

The latest metal markets news and price moves to start the North American day on Thursday November 8.The latest metal markets news and price moves to start the North American day on Thursday November 8.Base metals on the London Metal Exchange were mostly lower during morning trading, with a stronger US dollar and resurfacing US-China trade tensions adding downward pressure to...Read More

This afternoon the Federal Reserve concluded this month's Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting. Immediately following the conclusion of today's meeting, the Fed released a statement. There was no press conference held after the meeting. However, Chairman Powell has stated that next year every meeting will conclude with a press conference. "The labor market has continued to strengthen and...Read More

While US rebar prices remain stable, rising raw material costs and a tightening supply outlook in the colder months could provoke a price increase before the end of the year, according to market participants.Fastmarkets AMM's price assessment for domestic rebar held at $35-36 per hundredweight ($700-720 per short ton) fob Midwest mill on Wednesday November 7, unchanged since mid-April. Meanwh...Read More

Brazilian steelmaker Companhia Sider??rgica Nacional (CSN) maintained its third-quarter sales level after selling its rolling mill in the United States, its Wednesday November 7 earnings report said.Total sales for the country's third-largest flat steelmaker by volume fell from July to September to 1.29 million tonnes from 1.30 million in the same quarter of 2017, a drop of 0.8%. But whi...Read More

(Kitco News) - October’s equity correction, the biggest drop since the 2008 financial crisis, wasn’t enough to derail the Federal Reserve’s plan to gradually raise interest rates.As expected, the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged following Thursday’s monetary policy meeting; however, many economists noted that the central bank did not mention at all October&rsqu...Read More

Brazilian steelmaker Companhia Sider??rgica Nacional (CSN) sees no likelihood of discounts on steel prices to the domestic market in the near term, commercial director Luis Martinez told analysts on Thursday November 8.Chinese prices were a beacon to other markets and still had upside potential, he believed.CSN has increased its prices by an average of 27.00% so far in 2018, Martinez said during a...Read More

(Kitco News) - Gold and silver prices are just modestly lower in early-afternoon U.S. trading Thursday. A rebound in the U.S. dollar index today, following selling pressure this week, worked against the precious metals market bulls. The metals markets showed no significant reactions to the just-released FOMC minutes that show no change in U.S. monetary policy. December gold futures were last down...Read More

(Kitco News) - The gold market, while down on the day, is seeing little reaction to the Federal Reserve leaving interest rates unchanged and setting the stage for another interest rate hike in December.Following its two-day monetary policy meeting, the U.S. central bank left interest rates unchanged within a range between 2.00% and 2.25% as expected. However, in its statement, the committee reiter...Read More

(Kitco News) - The Bank of England (BoE) is reportedly refusing to release gold bars worth just over $550 million to President Nicolas Maduro, who fears that U.S. sanctions against Venezuela would restrict access to that gold in the future, according to media reports.Maduro is attempting to repatriate at least 14 tonnes of gold the BoE is currently storing, the British newspaper The Times and Reut...Read More

Output of steel slab by Brazilian steelmaker Companhia Sider??rgica Nacional (CSN) went down during the July-September quarter of 2018 because of a short outage for maintenance work, according to an earnings report published on Wednesday November 7.The company produced 937,000 tonnes of slabs in the quarter, down by 12.30% from 1.07 million tonnes in the corresponding months of 2017. There were on...Read More

(Kitco News) - Merger-and-acquisition activity in the mining sector is likely to pick up in the next year, said the consultancy EY in a report Thursday. The firm’s 19th Capital Confidence Barometer shows that 58% of global mining executives say they intend to pursue mergers and acquisitions in the next 12 months, compared with 46% across all sectors. Third-quarter deal value rose 25% from th...Read More

Turkish billet prices have increased over the past week, amid rising imported scrap values, but demand has remained limited due to high prices, sources said on Thursday November 8.Suppliers in the CIS region were offering billet into Turkey at around $485-490 per tonne cfr, but customers in Turkey were not bidding any higher than $475 per tonne.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for billet impor...Read More