To increase the transparency of our methodology, Fastmarkets clarifies that qualities of these two battery-grade lithium hydroxide assessments are both coarse. You can find the updated methodology for lithium hydroxide here: https://www.fastmarkets.com/uploads/2025/05/fm-mb-lithium.pdf To provide feedback on this clarification for the battery-grade lithium hydroxide methodology please contact Zihao Li by email at: pricing@fastmarkets.com. Please add the […]

Following a recent proposal to amend the specifications of the MB-IRO-0009 iron ore 65% Fe Brazil-origin fines, cfr Qingdao index – specifically, the increase in the silica base specification from 2.2% to 2.7% – Fastmarkets will introduce the high-grade iron ore, 0.5% Si VIU, cfr Qingdao index. This new index is designed to support the market’s transition and provide […]

Fastmarkets launched two new price assessments for Indonesia’s domestic trade in nickel ore on Tuesday July 15. The two price assessments are for domestic trades of Indonesian laterite ores with 1.6% and 1.2% nickel content. Indonesia now accounts for 60% of the global nickel supplies and while there is an official government reference price, known […]

The purpose of this review is to ensure that the index continues to accurately reflect prevailing market conditions. We welcome feedback from industry participants on potential amendments to the base specification. This consultation, which is open until August 9, 2025 seeks to ensure that our methodologies continue to reflect the physical market under indexation, in […]

Fastmarkets has launched MB-AL-0424 Aluminium P1020A premium, fob Indonesia, $/tonne on July 9 due to an expected increase in Indonesia-origin aluminium exports. MB-AL-0424 Aluminium P1020A premium, fob Indonesia, $/tonneQuality: P1020A or 99.7 % Minimum Al purity (Si 0.10% max, Fe 0.20% max) in line with LME specifications. Ingot, T-bar, sowQuantity: Min 500 tonnesLocation: FOB IndonesiaTiming: […]

Fastmarkets has corrected its daily AG-PLM-0012 refined bleached deodorised (RBD) palm olein, fob Indonesia price assessment, which was published incorrectly on July 7 due to an input error.

To increase the transparency of our methodology, Fastmarkets clarifies that the quotation period of the MHP nickel payable indicator is the month of delivery, or the month M. Any data points Fastmarkets received otherwise will be normalized to the M month based on the monthly spreads of the prevailing exchange-traded Class-1 nickel reference price, or […]

Tariff concerns and opaque import regulations dominated discussions among aluminium and copper scrap market participants at the 2025 ASEAN Recycling Metals International Conference held in Thailand on June 18-20.

My last Viewpoint at the end of February provided some thoughts on the outlook for Asian paper and board markets in 2025, and it highlighted three areas of concern that could hold back growth: the trade war, China's sluggish economy and inflation. Fast forward four months and a lot has happened, especially related to the trade war. In this Viewpoint, I provide my latest thoughts on developments in these three areas and then drill down specifically on the containerboard market and look at what has happened and where things are going.

Explore the impact of the trade war on the Chinese paper market with insights into April's data and economic signals.