IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 5 key stories from March 16

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday March 16 that are worth another look.

A sharp decline in market sentiment, linked to the spread of the coronavirus (2019-nCoV), has halted activity and reduced prices in the Japanese construction steel sector, steelmaker Tokyo Steel said.

Rio Tinto has slowed work on the underground project at its Oyu Tolgoi copper-gold mine in Mongolia because of the coronavirus (2019-nCoV) outbreak but it continues to operate and ship copper concentrates from the mine’s open pit.

The seaborne price of manganese ore in China fell to a two-months low in the week ended Friday March 13, after miners cut their offer prices in an attempt to offload material amid deteriorating sentiment.

Galaxy Resources expects to meet its production target of around 14,000-17,000 dry metric tonnes (dtm) of lithium concentrate for the first quarter of 2020 at its Western Australia spodumene project, Mt Cattlin, following the resumption of activities there in February.

The vanadium pentoxide price in Europe tumbled by more than 20% last week amid weakening demand and a falling alloys market, driven by growing fears of a global economic slowdown due to the novel coronavirus (2019-nCov) outbreak.

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Own-sourced copper output from Glencore’s African copper assets — KCC and Mutanda in the Democratic Republic of Congo — surged by 68% year on year to 67,900 tonnes over the same period, while Glencore’s cobalt production fell by 39% year on year amid the DRC’s export quota system.
Copper’s long-term outlook is constrained by the industry’s limited ability to bring new supply online fast enough to meet rising demand, with permitting delays, higher capital costs and policy risks slowing project development, industry executives said at the FT Commodities Global Summit on Wednesday April 22.
Capital is flowing back into junior mining, but selectively. Investment is increasingly favouring development‑stage assets with clearer paths to production, supported by government funding and strategic partnerships. While demand for critical minerals underpins the cycle, early‑stage explorers continue to struggle for capital as investors prioritise discipline, ESG alignment and near‑term cash flow.
Copper in concentrate production from Ivanhoe Mines' Kamoa-Kakula complex in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) fell to 61,906 tonnes in the first quarter, down by 54% from 133,120 tonnes a year earlier, with the company now evaluating local third-party concentrate purchases to advance the ramp-up of its on-site smelter, according to an April 13 production release as the market focused its attention on the impact of global sulfuric acid shortages during CESCO Week in Chile from April 13-17.
China's planned sulfuric acid export ban from May 1, historic lows for copper concentrates treatment and refining charges (TC/RCs) and a fragmenting 2026 benchmark system dominated CESCO Week 2026 in Santiago from April 13-17.
The proposal would align the index more closely with physically traded volumes in the region, and enable it to adjust to evolving market conditions. This proposal follows an observed widening of the spread between trader and smelter purchase components of the index and is aligned with a majority of market feedback. Additionally, Fastmarkets seeks feedback […]