IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 5 key stories from June 17

Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Monday June 17 that are worth another look.

Base metals traded on the London Metal Exchange posted marginal gains by the afternoon kerb on Monday June 17, buoyed by dovish whispers from the United States Federal Reserve and a weakened US dollar index. The exceptions were nickel and tin, which both logged losses.

A number of US aluminium consumers are lobbying for the introduction of the Aluminum Pricing Examination (APEX) Act, designed to enhance regulatory oversight over benchmarking entities for the Midwest premium. 

Newmont Goldcorp’s Peñasquito mine, the largest gold-silver mine in Mexico, has resumed production after a community blockade hindered its production since late April.

China is importing steel slab from Iran and Brazil to get around production limits placed on blast furnace operations in the country, industry sources told Fastmarkets MB over the past week.

The European ammonium paratungstate (APT) price has declined under pressure from weak demand and aggressive offers for material shipped from China, with ferro-tungsten prices also losing ground. Chinese tungsten concentrate pricing has also dipped due to weak demand.

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The publication of Fastmarkets' assessment of laterite ore with 1.6% nickel content, Indonesia domestic trade, delivered for Monday June 15, 2026 was delayed due to the unavailability of the latest Indonesian government mineral reference prices (HMA). Fastmarkets’ pricing database will be updated upon the release of the latest HMA.
Fastmarkets wishes to clarify details around the following aspects of the pricing methodology for MB-NI-0244 nickel sulfate min 21%, max 22.5%; cobalt 10ppm max, exw China.
Fastmarkets has corrected the rationale for its MB-MNO-0002 manganese ore semi carbonate index, 36.5% Mn, fob Port Elizabeth, which was published incorrectly on Friday June 5 due to incorrect source data.
A United Auto Workers (UAW) strike at the American Axle factory in Three Rivers, Michigan, that began on Monday June 1 could lead to reduced demand for automotive steel if not resolved quickly, but analysts disagree on whether it will ultimately have a significant impact.
The MB-MNO-0003 Manganese ore semi carbonate index, 36.5% Mn, cif Tianjin, $ per dmtu was published in error as $4.75 per dry metric tonne unit. It has been corrected to $4.74 per dmtu. The rationale for the same index on the same date was also updated to reflect this change. It erroneously stated that “Fastmarkets’ manganese ore semi-carbonate […]
The publication of Fastmarkets’ price assessments for MB-FEO-0004 molybdenum, MB drummed molybdic oxide Mo, in-whs Busan; for MB-FEO-0003 molybdenum, drummed molybdic oxide, 57% Mo min, in-whs Rotterdam; and for MB-FEO-0001 ferro-molybdenum, 65% Mo min, in-whs Rotterdam, was delayed on Monday June 8 owing to slow data processing.