PRICING NOTICE: Proposal to discontinue Chinese molybdenum concentrate, 45% Mo, price

Molybdenum concentrate 45% is mostly used to produce ferro-molybdenum, which is added to steel to increase its strength and corrosive resistance. In China, domestic prices of molybdenum have been steadily rising since its lows in November 2015 due to increasing demand from steel mills.

Consequently, sales of molybdenum concentrate 45% have declined, with greater demand for China’s molybdenum concentrate 50-55% instead.

Moreover, the market has moved from comprising mostly spot trades to long-term contracts with the nine major molybdenum producers in China.

Due to the fall in liquidity of spot-basis molybdenum concentrate 45%, Fastmarkets considers it appropriate to propose the discontinuation of its Chinese molybdenum concentrate 45% price.

Fastmarkets is now inviting market feedback on the proposed discontinuation. The full specifications for the price are as follows:

Description: Molybdenum concentrate 45% Mo in-warehouse China
Price: Yuan per tonne
Molybdenum concentrate: 45% minimum, Silicon Dioxide 9% maximum, Arsenic 0.01% maximum, Tin 0.02% maximum, Phosphorus 0.02% maximum, Copper 0.25% maximum, Lead 0.15% maximum, Calcium Oxide 2.7% maximum, Bismuth 0.05% maximum
Form: Powder
Lot size: 50 tonnes
Payment terms: Cash, other payment terms normalized
Publication: Weekly, Wednesday between 2pm and 3pm London time

The consultation period for this price/index discontinuation will end one month from the date of this pricing notice, on November 5. Subject to the results of the consultation, the changes will take place from November 7, meaning the final date the price will be assessed will be Wednesday October 31.

To provide feedback on this price or if you would like to provide price information by becoming a data submitter to this price, please contact Karen Ng by email at: pricing@metalbulletin.com. Please add the subject heading FAO: Karen Ng, re: Chinese molybdenum concentrate 45%

To see all Fastmarkets’ pricing methodology and specification documents go to https://www.metalbulletin.com/prices/pricing-methodology.html