Renewed demand puts seaborne low-grade manganese ore on uptrend

Renewed demand, sparked by lower offers in the past two weeks, shifted the seaborne manganese ore market to an uptrend this week, against the backdrop of support for portside prices and a strengthening performance in silico-manganese futures.

Fastmarkets' manganese ore index 37% Mn, cif Tianjin, ticked up by 9 cents to $4.36 per dry metric tonne unit (dmtu) on Friday April 23, from $4.27 per dmtu a week earlier.
But the corresponding index for manganese ore 44% Mn, cif Tianjin, dropped by 2 cents to $4.75 per dmtu on the same day, from $4.77 per dmtu the previous week.
The lower offers heard over the past two weeks have made sales easier, a supplier source said.
"I was surprised," the supplier source said. "Buying was quite good this week after lower prices [in the preceding seven days]. We achieved reasonably smooth acceptances."

Buyers attributed the renewed demand for low-grade manganese ore to the currently profitable alloy prices that have enhanced alloy smelters' willingness to accept the offers, and to trading houses' move to push down their average costs. These...

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