According to the BBC last week, British Steel, the U.K.’s second-largest steel producer, is knocking on the door of the British government for the second time in as many months looking for support. Need buying strategies for steel? Request your two-month free trial of MetalMiner’s Outlook In April, the firm borrowed £120 million from the […]
Stuart Burns
Stock Markets Pay the Price for Trade War Threats
The press has been all over the trade war-induced falls across stock markets. The New York Times reported this week that the S&P 500 was off 2.4% on Monday, the worst day since early January. Need buying strategies for steel? Request your two-month free trial of MetalMiner’s Outlook In all, the S&P 500 is down […]
U.S., China on the Bumpy Road That is Negotiation
Is President Donald Trump’s latest round of tweets and the resulting global stock market selloff just a negotiating ploy or is it the first signs the much-vaunted trade deal may not be going quite as smoothly as markets had obviously been pricing in? Need buying strategies for steel? Request your two-month free trial of MetalMiner’s […]
Just How Bad are European Steel Markets?
It is often tough to discern fact from fiction, particularly when it comes to corporations and politicians. Two developments this month in Europe raise questions about the relationship and balance of influence between major corporations and government. Are corporations reacting to markets or seeking to stimulate political action is often the question? Need buying strategies […]
Climate Change Presents Opportunities for Innovation
Not surprisingly, the most alarmist headlines were run by the most biased of news channels: the BBC. Need buying strategies for steel? Request your two-month free trial of MetalMiner’s Outlook Long advocates of left-wing sympathies, the Beeb — as the BBC is affectionately known in the UK — has for many years also been leading […]
Ocean Freight Rates are Set to Rise as Shippers Scramble to Install Scrubber Equipment
The International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) Jan. 1, 2020 deadline for shipping companies to use low-sulfur (0.5% max) fuel has been on and off in the news for months, but without much interest from those outside the industry or the environmental organizations that lobbied for its introduction. Need buying strategies for steel? Request your two-month free […]
OPEC, U.S. Shale Output at Odds as World Faces Tighter Oil Market
What a difference a month makes in commodity markets. Need buying strategies for steel? Request your two-month free trial of MetalMiner’s Outlook Just a month back, we reviewed the delicate balance OPEC was facing in trying to drive prices higher without having to make further cuts in output. It seemed every time they squeezed the […]
Challenges at Tesla’s Gigafactory Suggest EV Rollout Won’t be as Fast as Hoped For
Reports that Panasonic is stepping back from its commitment to develop its Reno, Nevada Gigafactory with Tesla have the note of warning about them suggesting all is not well with Tesla or for sales of its new Model 3 batteries, which the new factory was designed to make, according to TechCrunch. But Tesla blames lowered deliveries […]
Rusal Makes Post-Sanctions Splash with Investment in U.S. Downstream Production
Call me cynical if you will but Russian aluminum firm Rusal’s announcement, reported in the Financial Times last week, that it intends to invest $200 million for a 40% stake in a new Kentucky aluminum rolling mill — in partnership with privately owned Braidy Industries — has the ring of payback to it. Need buying strategies […]
Could Spot Iron Ore be on Track for $100/Ton?
According to Reuters, spot 62% grade iron ore for delivery to China recently rose 1.6% to $93 per metric ton and the most-traded May 2019 iron ore contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange soared as much as 4.1% to 710.5 yuan ($106) per ton — the highest for the Asian benchmark since 2013. Need buying […]
