IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 5 key stories from February 24

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday February 24 that are worth another look.

Chinese rebar remained the most competitively priced of imports of the long steel product in Singapore over the past week, edging out Turkish products.

The discount for copper scrap imported into China has fallen in February on a lower commodity price and a negative arbitrage, with the impact of virus-led delivery delays on the overseas scrap price being minimal in the Chinese market.

The market for high-carbon ferro-chrome delivered into Europe strengthened for the fifth consecutive week on Friday February 21 in response to tightening supply and despite the weak stainless-steel sector.

Chinese domestic portside ore prices of both grades moved lower for the second consecutive week after some ore traders slashed their offer prices to facilitate sales in response to persistently weak buying appetite.

Vanadium prices were under pressure in the week to February 21 amid weak consumer demand, despite continued supply disruptions in China following the novel coronavirus (nCoV-19) outbreak.

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The European Union’s Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA), published on Wednesday March 4, was a new step in the bloc’s efforts to decarbonize heavy industry and to support strategic supply chains in sectors such as steel, cement and aluminium.
Fastmarkets will increase the frequency of its two existing CIF China port copper scrap prices and add three new grades on Monday March 16.
Jeddah in Saudi Arabia and Port of Sohar in Oman are becoming tactical workarounds for base metal exports blocked by the Strait of Hormuz closure, with cargo transiting via land-bridge to other Gulf states, such as Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates – though capacity constraints and elevated logistics costs limit availability, sources with direct visibility of Gulf supply chains told Fastmarkets.
The Mexican aluminium market might be strongly affected by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, with supply constraints and consequently higher premiums, market participants told Fastmarkets on Tuesday March 10.
Lundin Mining and BHP published a preliminary economic assessment on February 16 for their Vicuña joint venture, projecting average annual copper production of 395,000 tonnes over the first 25 years of operation as Argentina’s copper concentrate pipeline continues to build. PSJ Cobre Mendocino separately confirmed on February 14 that its feasibility study was under way.
Chinese lead smelters turned more bearish on the procurement of raw materials in the week to Friday February 13, amid heightened price volatility in silver, which is often contained in lead ores as an important by-product and contributor to smelter profits, sources told Fastmarkets.