Global Steel & Metals Market News, Prices & Analysis

PODCAST: A brief introduction to Kazakhstan’s mining industry
May 23, 2012 - 16:30 GMT
Claire Hack reports from Almaty, Kazakhstan, where she has travelled to meet Central Asia Metals as it prepares for the official opening of its Kounrad copper project in eastern Kazakhstan, which is targeting production of 10,000 tpy of copper cathode.
European coil import prices start to slip on low demand
May 23, 2012 - 15:55 GMT
European import prices for hot and cold rolled coil (HRC and CRC) fell this week as interest in imports faltered on the back of poor demand for domestic products, trading sources told Metal Bulletin.
UK secondary aluminium ingot volumes up, prices down
May 23, 2012 - 15:28 GMT
UK secondary aluminium ingot prices fell on Wednesday May 23 as buyers found lower prices even as volumes improved from those seen in the past two weeks.
Selenium prices drop as China, India put pressure on market
May 23, 2012 - 14:19 GMT
Selenium prices dropped on Wednesday as market participants in India sold cheaply and Chinese buyers demanded lower prices from international suppliers, pointing to weak domestic demand.
Shanghai copper prices down as Greece fear dominates sentiment
May 23, 2012 - 11:18 GMT
Shanghai Futures Exchange copper prices sank by 1.6% on Wednesday May 23, as falls in global markets weakened sentiment.

Base metals

PODCAST: A brief introduction to Kazakhstan’s mining industry May 23, 2012 16:30
Euro strife drives base metals prices lower in LME officials May 23, 2012 14:31
Rwanda seeks bidders for tin deposit May 23, 2012 13:23
Shanghai copper prices down as Greece fear dominates sentiment May 23, 2012 11:18

Carbon steel

European coil import prices start to slip on low demand May 23, 2012 15:55
European plate market under pressure from high stocks, import offers May 23, 2012 14:40
CHINA STEEL WRAP: Rebar prices at seven-month low May 23, 2012 11:10
China H-beam prices plunge in weak market May 23, 2012 07:42

Ores & Alloys

Ferro-molybdehum price slides as suppliers slash offers May 23, 2012 15:05
Chinese tungsten ore output drops 8% in April May 23, 2012 14:43
South Australia still optimistic about BHP's Olympic Dam May 23, 2012 04:10
Temco restart may crimp US manganese alloy tags May 23, 2012 00:47

Raw materials

Metinvest Q1 revenue flat as steel sales drop, raw materials sales rise May 23, 2012 15:50
DAILY SCRAP REPORT: Index unchanged on lack of new offers May 23, 2012 14:45
Chinese tungsten ore output drops 8% in April May 23, 2012 14:43
Gujarat NRE Coking Coal targets 5m tpy output by 2016 May 23, 2012 10:55

Exchange news

Ferro-molybdehum price slides as suppliers slash offers May 23, 2012 15:05
Euro strife drives base metals prices lower in LME officials May 23, 2012 14:31
Shanghai copper prices down as Greece fear dominates sentiment May 23, 2012 11:18
Copper prices give up gains on renewed Greek fears in LME pre-market May 23, 2012 10:04

Scrap & secondary

UK secondary aluminium ingot volumes up, prices down May 23, 2012 15:28
DAILY SCRAP REPORT: Index unchanged on lack of new offers May 23, 2012 14:45
China halts scrap imports on weak domestic market May 23, 2012 10:24
SE Asia scrap prices down $15-20 as buyers await market cues May 23, 2012 08:53

Minor & precious metals

Selenium prices drop as China, India put pressure on market May 23, 2012 14:19
China's bismuth price rebound proves short-lived May 23, 2012 12:59
Selenium price drop accelerates in China May 23, 2012 12:53
South Australia still optimistic about BHP's Olympic Dam May 23, 2012 04:10

Stainless & special steel

NAS cuts stainless extra for June May 23, 2012 14:57
Chinese tungsten ore output drops 8% in April May 23, 2012 14:43
CHINA STEEL WRAP: Rebar prices at seven-month low May 23, 2012 11:10
Chinese nickel pig iron production may drop significantly in June May 23, 2012 10:45

PRICE BOOK

Customise your price book

Comment & analysis

EXPERT VIEW FROM ERNST & YOUNG: Horror week favours the brave

Seven days is a long time in the investment world, but last week must have felt longer than most.
COMMENT: When super-cycle poster child BHP Billiton trims its plans...

BHP Billiton is one of the poster children for the commodities super-cycle: a mining company whose immense upstream assets in copper and iron ore have fed the industrialisation of China since the early years of the 21st century and enabled it to return $52 billion to shareholders between 2001 and 2011.
LORD COPPER: There is nothing to fear after JP Morgan loss ...

So, here we go again. Another bank, another huge trade gone bad. This one doesn’t even appear to have been a case of rogue trading; a whole desk seems to have been operating with the full knowledge of the management and/or risk committee.

Previous Next

Poll of the week

To what extent has the handling of the MF Global bankruptcy, UBS’ rogue trading scandal and now JP Morgan’s harpooning of the London Whale damaged your confidence in the City as a global financial hub?

Not at all – these events could have happened anywhere
Slightly – large losses and the slow recovery of client cash suggest the regulatory framework could be stronger
Moderately – These events show global banks are using London to take risks they couldn’t take anywhere else
Drastically – I’ll be in Singapore by the end of the week