The copper price is likely to finish 2021 lower than its current level. However, they could yet see some further gains in the year, industry watchers told MetalMiner. “It’s sentiment-driven,” one analyst said about current prices for the base metal and the prospect for increases in them over the year. Each month, MetalMiner hosts a […]
Category: Metal Prices
Beijing’s warning to speculators sends metals prices falling
China’s “zero tolerance” warning to commodity speculators over the weekend sent prices of some metals and iron ore tumbling. A meeting held on Sunday between at least five government departments, including the the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), concluded that the fight against hoarders and speculators leading to soaring commodities prices would be taken […]
This Morning in Metals: US steel capacity utilization dips slightly to 79.0%
This morning in metals news: the US steel capacity utilization rate reached 79.0% last week; the state-owned Indonesia Battery Corporation and South Korea’s LG will build a $1.2 billion battery plant in Indonesia; and the copper price has cooled since reaching an all-time high earlier this month. Each month, MetalMiner hosts a webinar on a […]
Metals prices pull back from recent highs
A bullish report in Reuters last week advising metal output in China was breaking records, again, looks at odds with developments this week. Relentlessly rising prices have taken a sharp about-turn, the BBC reported. See why technical analysis is a superior forecasting methodology over fundamental analysis and why it matters for your aluminum buy. Rising […]
Week in Review: Copper overheating?; cobalt pilot project; MetalMiner webinars
Before we head into the weekend, let’s take a look back at the week that was and the metals storylines here on MetalMiner, including copper price developments, an upcoming MetalMiner webinar and more: The MetalMiner Best Practice Library offers a wealth of knowledge and tips to help buyers stay on top of metals markets and […]
Tin in extreme distress as inventory is low, logistics delays persist
When the topic of tin comes up, many people think of baked beans — well, maybe not the beans, but the tin they come in. Tinplate is a major consumer of metallic tin. However, due to technological development over the decades, many tins are now coated with resins. Those that still use tin are operating […]
This Morning in Metals: UC Rusal to demerge high-carbon assets, change name to AL+
This morning in metals news: UC Rusal will demerge its high-carbon assets; meanwhile, steel industry groups issued a renewed call to the Biden administration to ask him to keep the Section 232 steel tariff in place; and the copper price has picked back up this week. You want more MetalMiner on your terms. Sign up […]
Copper prices continue to surge — is the market in danger of overheating?
Copper prices have risen relentlessly from $4,371 per ton in March last year to over $10,450/ton now. Stories of a new supercycle put out by the likes of Goldman Sachs may have helped. However, so have massive imports by China over the last year. Reuters reports physical purchases by China, both commercial and state, hit […]
Week in Review: Copper price surges; USW-ATI standoff continues; iron ore booms
Before we head into the weekend, let’s take a look back at the week that was and some of the metals storylines here on MetalMiner. In addition, our May 2021 Monthly Metals Index (MMI) PDF is now available for download. The PDF summary includes an executive summary, trends chart and portions of each MMI article […]
Stainless MMI: ATI strike continues into seventh week
The Stainless Monthly Metals Index (MMI) increased by 7.0% for this month’s reading, as the ATI strike entered its seventh week this week. Do you know the five best practices of sourcing metals, including stainless steel? ATI strike continues In late March, the United Steelworkers union announced a strike at nine Allegheny Technologies Inc. (ATI) facilities. […]