Editor Vera Blei looks at the main news covered by Steel First this week.

Chinese steelmakers have begun reining in output to minimise losses, but market participants said much steeper production cuts may be needed to stabilise prices.

Three-month base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were up across the board by an average of 0.7% on the morning of Thursday November 15.

Steel billet prices in most markets were stable or went down in the week from Monday April 16 to Friday April 20 on reduced trading activity worldwide, with the exception of China, where prices strengthened slightly amid good demand.

Algeria imported 2.27 million tonnes of steel with a value of $1.72 billion in the first half of 2012, according to figures recently released by the country’s customs authority.

Freight costs from Russia to Turkey for material from Rostov have edged up because of the high volumes of grain shipments, sources told Steel First this week.

Three-month base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were in a steadier tone so far on Wednesday September 12, after they closed broadly lower on Tuesday amid dollar strength and rising trade war concerns.

Base metals prices had a strong start to the trading week after a solid close on Monday April 16. Two metals dominated the headlines yesterday: the London Metal Exchange’s three-month aluminium price continued its vertical surge, while nickel closed above $14,000 per tonne amid growing concerns that the United States could implement additional sanctions on Russia.

The London Metal Exchange will introduce market-making programmes to enhance the liquidity of its new products and existing contracts, it said on Thursday August 20.

History shows that crises such as the Wuhan coronavirus have a relatively short-lived impact on global financial markets. Commodities such as soybeans, metals and paper have longer-term issues to worry about.