From August 7, Fastmarkets will publish its cobalt hydroxide index, min 30% Co, cif China on Friday every other week.

The decision to increase the pricing frequency of the index reflects market feedback from an initial consultation period and a review of fixed price data that was collected over the course of two weeks, which indicated the move would enable participants to track and respond to changes in the market in a more timely manner.

The publication time of Fastmarkets’ cobalt hydroxide payable indicator, min 30% Co, cif China, % payable of Fastmarkets’ standard-grade cobalt price (low end) is unchanged. It is published twice a week, on Wednesday and Friday at 3pm London time.

The new specifications are listed below, with the new frequency in italics.

MB-CO-0020: Cobalt hydroxide index 30% Co min, cif China, $/Ib
Quality: Units produced from large-scale mining activity, with the following chemical composition: Co 30% min, Mn 6.5% max, Mg 6.5% max, S 5% max; Cd 100ppm max; limited concentration of natural radioactivity: GB20664-2006 (suitable for customs clearance into China).
Quantity: Min 50 tonnes (cobalt content)
Location: cif China (other terms normalized)
Timing: 45 days
Unit: $/lb
Payment terms: Letter of credit at sight, current price month (‘M’)
Publication time: 5pm London time, Friday, fortnightly
Note: Where pricing day falls on a public holiday in England and Wales, the index will be published on the closest working day preceding that date.

In addition, given the growing amount of cobalt hydroxide business that was concluded at fixed prices in the past month, Fastmarkets has proposed to further increase the pricing frequency of cobalt hydroxide index to weekly.

The related consultation will end on September 2, and subject to feedback, publication of the cobalt hydroxide index will increase to weekly, from September 4.

All historical data relating to the assessment prior to the amendment will remain available in the pricing section of the Fastmarkets website.

To provide feedback on the cobalt hydroxide price assessments, or if you would like to provide price information by becoming a data submitter, please contact Charlotte Radford and Susan Zou by email at: pricing@fastmarkets.com. Please add the subject heading ‘FAO: Charlotte Radford/Susan Zou re: cobalt hydroxide price assessments.’

To see all Fastmarkets’ pricing methodology and specification documents, go to https://www.fastmarkets.com/about-us/methodology.