With global supply tight, BHP Billiton has been able to boost manganese ore prices by 310% to Japanese buyers for fiscal 2008, starting April 1.
Nippon Steel and Japanese leading ferroalloy maker, Nippon Denko, agreed to increase the manganese ore purchase price by 4.1 times.
This is the first price increases in three years for ore and will push up the ferroalloy price, according to Merrill Lynch analysts....
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Prices of the medicinal minor metal bismuth rose by one-fourth in Shanghai in the last week due to short supplies after production was disrupted in provinces hit by freak ice and snow storms.
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China exported 1,030 metric tons of unwrought antimony in January '08, up 325.5 percent compared to the same period last year, the General Administration of Customs said Friday.
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Chinese government issued around 23,000 tonnes of export license for rare earth as the first batch for 2008.
The total volume for the year could reduce to 36,000 tonnes in 2008 from 40,000 tonnes in 2007 when the country reduced the volume by 10% in recent years.
The country reduces the export by around 3% for tungsten and antimony and by 10% for tin.
– Japan Metal Bulletin
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Owing tightened supply the prices of Antimony Metal continue to go up in China ,the current domestic sale prices have come to RMB42,000-43,000/Mt with the rising range of RMB2,500-3,000/Mt .The prices of Antimony Metal were about RMB39,500-40,000/Mt in China in the middle of Jan and before the heavy storm.But influenced by heavy storm and Chinese Spring Festival the domestic antimony supply are tightened and the prices rise accordingly.Now the basic selling quotations from antimony manufacturers are all at about the level of FOB USD5,900/Mt.The manufacturers who have antimony metal stock rised their sale prices one after another.
Although the smelters and manufacturers are recovering their production gradually ,but the actual total output have not come to the normal standard of the same period .It is predicted by insiders that everything will go well once the electric power completely recovers in March .Some companies have started up some antimony smelters but the others are all under stop production status .So far we do not know when the smelters will start production from stop production status. There are still some areas that have not been recovered the elecric power ,so the manufacturers can not confirm when will come back to the normal production standard. On the other hand the export quotations in China have appeared rising trend that have aroused "reject purchasing feeling" from oversea's buyers.
It is disclosed by one Beijing based trader that the current antimony export quotations have rised to CIF USD 6,250/Mt ,which is USD50/Mt higher than last week.News from one Hongkong based trader that the current quotations for 99.65% Antimony Metals are CIF East and South Asia Port USD 6,000/Mt ,but it was USD 5,700/Mt at the beginning of Feb,2008 ,and there was no customer to accept such price .Analysed by insiders that the rising speed for the current prices are very rapidly that make some customers do not have the proper mental preparation. So the customers with inquries can not catch up with the price rising speed .
Except the supply factors ,the RMB increase in value has been another reason.When the RMB benchmark price rised 1-2% the antimony prices will rise about USD 20-30/Mt to fatch up the loss to the manufacturers .As far as the future antimony market trend is concerned ,most of the customers consider that the price can not drop to the level of USD 5000/Mt .
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More consumers are coming to the market with inquiries and find higher prices of manganese flake. And sources reported the price keeps increasing from RMB23,800-24,100/t (USD3,324-3,366/t) ex works at the beginning of this week to RMB24,200-24,500/t (USD3,380-3,422/t) ex works yesterday, about RMB400/t (USD56/t) higher. Supply remains tight and most suppliers claimed it impossible for the supply back to normal before the middle of March.
The source believes the insufficient supply of raw materials is another factor embarrassing the smelters. The source has its own manganese mine and thus the supply of manganese ore is not a hindrance to its production but he complained it difficult to replenish sulphate in the market and predicted its price would go up.
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The steep increase in prices, announced Tuesday by the Chinese government's National Bureau of Statistics, is the latest warning sign that China has been transformed from a moderating influence on global prices to a source of inflationary pressure.
Chinese exporters are trying to pass on their rising costs to overseas customers, which could contribute to inflation in the United States and Europe.
"Our company is faced with rising labor costs and raw material costs," said Michelle Yin, a sales manager for the Shanghai Yongqiu Compressor Company, which makes walk-in coolers and freezers and exports to the United States and Europe. "Depending on the margin we get from individual customers, we have been able to pass on all or part of the cost increase. For new customers, we typically have to set prices more aggressively to get their business.
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As Chinese suppliers were shut down in the last few weeks due to the bad weather and Chinese holiday, American market participants reported to Asian Metal that antimony trioxide is selling at higher prices than two weeks ago.
A Chinese representative located in U.S. disclosed that he is selling 99.5%min antimony trioxide at USD2.55/lb d.d.p. to American consumers, and the material shipped to U.S. ports is in the range of USD5,400-5,500/t CIF Baltimore.
According to him, the price had increased fast in America in the last two weeks that the price before Chinese New Year was at around USD2.40-2.45/lb d.d.p. and now increased by USD0.10-0.15/lb. However, he holds that the price will not go up further because many consumers and traders have stock on hand to last about a month before the new material arrives America from China.
An official from a Eastern coast consumer reported to Asian Metal that the antimony trioxide price is about USD5,500/t CIF U.S. port for 99.5%min normal brand material, and the price had increased in the last couple of weeks. He heard the snowstorm in China, and thinks this could be the reason for increasing price.
According to him, the demand of antimony trioxide is very active in the American market. He holds that the increasing price will not affect the antimony demand as they are more focused on keeping normal production.
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Some manganese ore suppliers raise the offer for manganese ore this week, and think the market is warming up slightly now.
A Shandong-based manganese ore trader raised the offer of Philippine manganese ore 40% from RMB70/dmtu ex ports to RMB75/dmtu (USD9.16/dmtu) ex ports on Wednesday. The source received some enquiries for the material this week and concluded a deal of 35% grade at RMB68/dmtu (USD8.31/dmtu) ex ports with a long-term ferromanganese smelter early this week.
"Because of the snowstorm in South China and power restriction policy, Chinese manganese alloy smelters are reluctant to purchase manganese ore in large quantity," said the source. "I believe the price of manganese ore will creep up in the coming days this month because of the strong demand from the market and higher cost for us to get the material.
A Tianjin-based manganese ore trader raised the offer of Australian manganese ore 45% from RMB87/dmtu (USD10.70/dmtu) ex ports to RMB91/dmtu (USD11.2/dmtu) ex ports early this week. The source reveals that he has received more enquiries these days and some deals are still under negotiation now. He thinks manganese ore market will boom late February because more smelters will return to the market by then.
"We raised the offer for the material on Wednesday in view of the high cost and some buyers still intend to get the material at RMB85/dmtu ex ports now. However, we will not sell the material below RMB88/dmtu ex ports for the time being."
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Chinese-origin 99.7% manganese metal offer prices have continued to rise, moving beyond $3,000/mt FOB China this week. Prices, however, are quoted in a wide range at $3,000-3,500/mt FOB China in a thin market, local traders said on Thursday. Prices were indicated at around $2,000-2,200/mt FOB China a week ago.
One Hong Kong-based trader said: "Offer prices for manganese metal are changing every day. I am now offering material at about $3,200/mt FOB China but could not find buyers so far." The trader said prices for its raw material carbonate manganese ore prices were rising, leading to firmer manganese metal prices. "Manganese ore is rich in Hunan province of China but the area's mining activity has been further restricted by the government due to the heightened environmetal protection policy in China," he said.
Another trader said: "The highest offer price level I heard earlier this week was at $3,500/mt FOB China. Prices are up but we can't find spot material available so far. Chinese producers are holding back their material when prices are going up." A third trader added: "Prices were up earlier this week but we are now seeing some technical correction these past two days. Offer prices are all over the place and moving in wide range due to market speculation."...
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Unforged manganese, manganese scraps and powder, some other kinds of manganese and products made of manganese were put in Promulgating Catalog of Commodities under Administration of Export License, according to the latest announcement by the Ministry of Commerce and General Administration of Customs.
This is another policy adopted by the government to regulate the industry of electrolytic manganese, following the 15 per cent export tariff on unforged manganese that began on Nov. 1, 2006. At the present, price of electrolytic manganese are surging, with a lot of contract-breaching on the market. And at the same time manganese companies are finding ways to export electrolytic manganese without paying the tariff.
The export tariff levied since Jan. 1, 2006 heats the market of electrolytic manganese a lot. At the beginning, the buyers and sellers could not reach agreements on the prices of electrolytic manganese and this made lots of signed contract with the goods unshipped called off. But with the new year approaching, many buyers were starting to accept the prices which are raised from 1260-US$1280 per ton (FOB) to 1500-US$1550 per ton (FOB).
Since Dec. 2006, the domestic prices of electrolytic manganese are surging again, because the supply of it are insufficient, especially the supply from Huaheng of Hunan and Xiushang of Chongqing, which are the top two source of manganese. Domestic sellers lift their prices to 1750-1800 US dollars pre ton (FOB) but the buyers abroad did not accepted them. The market depressed again. An analyst from Umetal.net notes that Chinese sellers may raise their prices again with the administration rules specified and the battle on prices will start again.
According to the statistics of China customs, the production and exports of unforged manganese are affected seriously since Nov. last year. Many enterprises stopped exporting and the volume of manganese exports and the number of export enterprises decreased a lot. Unforged manganese exports in November is 2.4 tons and US$31.68 million, down by 2.7 per cent and 12.9 pe...
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BEIJING (Bloomberg) - China, the world's largest producer of lead, had a more than 50% gain in exports of the metal to a five-month high in November as disruptions to shipments from rival suppliers boosted prices.
Lead exports rose to 24,352 metric tonne from 15,781 tonne the previous month, the Beijing-based customs office said on Monday. It was "very profitable for Chinese producers to export the metal" after prices surged, Shenzhen Rongtuo Trading Co. analyst Pang Ying said by phone on Monday.
Lead is this year's best-performing metal, with the benchmark London Metal Exchange contract for delivery in three months rising 59% to settle at $2,650 a tonne on Dec. 21. The price rose to a record $3,890.15 a tonne on October 10.
Prices climbed this year as exports by Ivernia Inc., producer of 3% of the world's lead from its mine in Australia, were banned in March after the discovery of elevated levels of lead in some residents' blood. Ivernia has campaigned to restart exports through Fremantle, saying its plan is safe....
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Electrolytic manganese price remains at high level and further inches
up in the first week of March. The market runs steadily with powerful
demand and tightened supply. Ex-work price for electrolytic manganese
in main producing areas has all exceeded RMB12,200/mt, while quoted
price in East regions arrived at around RMB13,000/mt.
Tightened supply in raw materials is still the main trouble
electrolytic manganese producers are facing. Ferro Alloys reports that
a producer in Guangxi could hardly work due to tightened supply in
manganese ore and electricity power.
In export aspect, an exporter in Hunan told Ferro Alloys that their
quoted price of electrolytic manganese flakes 99.7% is over
USD2,000/mt FOB, but transaction is slim. They have been receiving
many inquiries from foreign traders, but the high quoted price hold
buyers back. According to them, though high price is benefit for
exporters, they still feel anxious when there's few contract.
As mentioned in Monthly Comment on Electrolytic Manganese Market in
Feb 2007, one of the main reasons for the recent well performance of
the market is strong demand in export market and tightened supply, and
the situation could be changed in the coming two months if export
market became slim and domestic productions resumed. However, since
now foreign purchasers are resistant to accept high quoted price from
China's exporters, powerful demand is expected to last for a longer
time, which is a piece of good news for the whole industry. It is
predictable that electrolytic manganese market will keep the upward
trend, and price is not likely to slip in the near future.
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With most of Chinese on holiday this week, European antimony supply becomes tight. European dealers reported deals of antimony ingot price already concluded higher than USD6,000/t in warehouse Rotterdam.
A European trader revealed to Asian Metal that he bought 48t low bismuth grade two antimony ingot from two other traders at around USD6,200/t in warehouse Rotterdam. "Because there are no Chinese supply at the moment, and I think very little material on water, so I have to accept whatever the price is as I have contract to fulfill," said the source.
He disclosed that the consumers are resisting the higher prices, especially the major ones; they want to wait until after the Chinese New Year for lower prices. However, the trader believes there is almost no material on water, so price will continue to go up until the end of March that is when the first shipment will arrive Europe.
A European trader told Asian Metal that antimony price broke the USD6,000/t barrier in the last two days, and now is trading at around USD6,150/t in warehouse Rotterdam. "I am about to conclude a deal this morning at that price," said the source.
According to the trader, the availability of antimony in warehouse Rotterdam is very tight. "This is a result of less liquidity," concluded the trader who thinks there would be more material if there are more traders in the market, but now the flat market had driven many small traders out of the market. "When there is emergency, the consumers couldn't find enough material and have to accept the higher prices."
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On account of few Chinese suppliers offering material now, European dealers reported to Asian Metal that price is moving up fast, and there are more demand in the market when the price is firming up.
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Although demand is still not picking up, European dealers reported to Asian Metal that manganese price is moving up fast, and they expect little availability soon.
A European trader confirmed a deal of manganese concluded on last Wednesday at USD4,150/t in warehouse, and the current offers from China are at around USD4,400/t CIF Rotterdam. "However, my customers resist to buy at such high prices," said the trader last Friday.
Due to the combination of the Chinese New Year and bad weather in China, the source believes new material will not be available in the market until the middle or late March, so price will continue to go up. "But there is some profit-taking at the moment, so price may not go up as fast as last year," said the source.
Another trader reported to Asian Metal that deals of manganese concluded at USD4,400/t in warehouse Rotterdam, and now people who have material are offering at USD4,700/t in warehouse for manganese flake, and USD4,850/t for manganese lump. He believes price will reach USD5,000/t by this week.
According to the trader, many market participants have raw material that will last until the end of February, so they are waiting for the price to drop. "But they will find price is not going to lower until April," remarked the source, and added, "They will have to pay higher prices by then."
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Antimony market sees few activities during the week as traffic in many parts of Souch China has come to a standstill due to the infrequent heavy snow. However, most Chinese smelters hold high offers of antimony ingot and trioxide, expecting a better market after the Spring Festival.
Both major producers and small scaled smelters have been troubled by the traffic chaos, and many of them were forced to reduce or even halt production due to short supply of raw materials. Meanwhile, few concluded deals have been reported as it is hard to transport goods out of smelters to end users or ports. Considering the market supply may be tighter if more smelters stop production before the Spring Festival, many smelters take high expectations towards the market after the Spring Festival, and therefore insist on high quotations. Some major producers cease quoting and some quote as high as RMB40,000/t (USD5,548/t) ex works to keep buyers away, but limited deals were concluded at prices above RMB39,000/t (USD5,409/t) ex works. Meanwhile, small smelters in Lengshuijiang also hold the offer of around RMB37,000-37,300/t (USD5,132-5,173/t) VAT excluded, but few deals were closed due to the transportation difficulty.
Antimony trioxide producers also encounter the same problem that raw material supply is erratic and price goes higher. Therefore, many of them raise offers to RMB36,000-36,500/t (USD4,993-5,062/t) ex works. However, due to the bad traffic condition, little new business has been done during the week, and many producers are trying their best to fulfill the signed contracts, many of which were concluded at RMB34,500- 35,000/t (USD4,785-4,854/t) ex works.
Prompted by higher quotations in Chinese domestic market, temporary tight supply caused by bad traffic condition as well as appreciation of RMB, suppliers also raise export quotations of antimony ingot and trioxide greatly. Foreign buyers reported that they received higher offers of USD5,600-5,650/t CIF Rotterdam for strandard grade-two antimony ingot, USD50-100/t higher compared to two weeks ago. Meanwhile, Chinese traders continue to raise quotations of antimony trioxide to USD4,900-4,950/t FOB from USD4,850-4,900/t FOB the previous week, though few deals were reported. Meanwhile, Hsikwangshan insists on a higher offer of USD5,000/t FOB for its Twinkling Star antimony trioxide as the supply turns tigher led by short supply of raw material.
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Due to the icy weather in southern China, European market participants reported to Asian Metal that they received higher quotations from Chinese suppliers and many of them hold that price will go up in the coming days.
A European trader revealed that the Chinese producers are raising offers because of the bad weather condition in China. "I was told that many producers were forced to close their production, and transportation is terrible in southern China." According to him, the price went up by USD50-100/t from USD5,500-5,550/t to currently USD5,600-5,650/t CIF Rotterdam for 99.65% standard grade two antimony ingot.
The trader holds that the consumers will come to market soon. "Some consumers bought material handto- mouth and they will realize price will go up higher, so they may come to market for big quantities," said the source, who believes price will go up further in the coming several weeks.
Another market participant also claimed that the offers he received is about USD100/t more expensive for the low bismuth grade two antimony ingot, and the highest offer was USD5,700/t CIF Rotterdam.
"I think price will go up in the near future," said the source and admitted the production difficulties and transportation problem will have impact in the European antimony price.
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Snowstorms raging across China's Hunan Province have lasted for two weeks, making the traffic situation graver in the province. Many antimony ingot and trioxide smelters have been forced to halt production due to lack of raw materials and power shortage. Coupled with the great difficulty in conveying goods, the antimony products market has come to a standstill.
A Hunan-based antimony ingot producer, with a capacity of 3,000tpy, stopped production ahead of schedule last week due to the harsh weather. According to an official from the smelter, Hunan province suffered its coldest winter as well as the longest snowfall in record in the past 50 years. Many antimony ingot and trioxide smelters in Loudi and Yiyang, the major antimony products producing areas, closed down due to the severe weather.
Located in the mountainous area, the smelter had great difficulty in transporting raw materials in and products out. It also delayed the delivery of contracted materials as the roads are covered with snow and ice.
The smelter sold some antimony ingot at and slightly above RMB39,000/t (USD5,417/t) ex works in the middle of January and suspended quoting a week ago when the weather condition worsens. "The market is likely to stay stagnant till the middle of February when participants return from the Spring Festival holiday," said the source.
A Guangdong-based trader said that all the contracted antimony trioxide will not be delivered on time to overseas customers due to the traffic chaos. "Heavy snow has paralyzed China's traffic. Combined with the Chinese New Year travel peak, it's impossible to deliver goods from smelters to ports now," said the source
The source confirmed that the antimony products market becomes quieter as traffic condition worsens. Most smelters suspend offering and plan to sell after the Spring Festival. The source received offers of USD4,900-5,000/t FOB China for antimony trioxide late last week, USD100/t up compared to the price two weeks ago, but none of his customers would like to purchase at the increased price.
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Chinese antimony market
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