Chemical News
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China's clean energy generation accelerates in first half Jul 20,2017
More electricity has been generated from clean energy sources in China in the first half of this year, a senior official said Tuesday. The amount of electricity generated from clean energy sources increased by 5.15 percent year on year, equivalent to a 22-million-tonne reduction in thermal coal consumption, said Yan Pengcheng, spokesperson with t...>>>
August North American methanol contracts expected flat: sources Jul 20,2017
North American posted methanol contract prices for August will roll over from July pricing, market sources predicted on Wednesday. Those expecting flat pricing based the outlook on the thin market activity and slowed movement in spot pricing over the last month, sources said. US spot methanol was assessed Wednesday at 89.75-90.25 cents/gal FO...>>>
European acrylonitrile price decline slows from June Jul 20,2017
The European acrylonitrile spot market was heard maintaining its downwards trend this week on higher European production and imports from the Americas, albeit at a slower pace than in June, sources said on Tuesday. The European spot price of ACN was assessed at $1,500/mt CIF ARA last week, down $175/mt since June when prices were at their highes...>>>
Tacora Resources buys idled iron mine in eastern Canada, plans to restart Jul 20,2017
Tacora Resources has acquired the long-idled Wabush iron ore mines in the western part of Canada's Labrador province, which it plans to restart, the company said Wednesday. Tacora has a five-year agreement with Cargill to sell all of the iron ore produced at the mine, the company said. Larry Lehtinen, the founder of iron ore concentrate and p...>>>
European physical base metals: Zinc premiums stable, LME-SHFE arbitrage closes Jul 20,2017
S&P Global Platts assessed the European duty-paid SHG zinc monthly premium at $125-$140/mt plus LME cash in-warehouse Rotterdam on Wednesday. That was unchanged from last month as most deals were done within those levels and, despite slower summer spot activity, most market participants said demand was steady. "Demand is quite good," a trader...>>>
Iran's Mobarakeh Steel cuts HRC exports in advance of EU duty: producer group Jul 20,2017
Mobarakeh Steel Co's hot rolled coil exports to the EU have fallen sharply following reports the 28-nation bloc plans to impose a 23% anti-dumping duty, the Iranian Steel Producers' Association (ISPA) said. Only 34,000 mt of HRC were exported by Iran in the first three months of the current Iranian year (to June 21), which was 93% lower year on ...>>>
Iron ore and coking coal make their way into Japanese steel contracts Jul 20,2017
Some Japanese steelmakers are for the first time offering automotive steel sheet priced off the spot price of steelmaking raw materials to local and international carmakers, executives at large steel and automotive companies told S&P Global Platts this month. This is a significant milestone, as auto sheet sold on long-term contracts in Japan has...>>>
BHP Billiton meets iron ore, met coal output guidance, both to grow in fiscal 2017-2018 Jul 20,2017
BHP Billiton hit the lower end of its fiscal 2016-2017 (July-June) guidance for iron ore production, met its recently reduced guidance for metallurgical coal production, and expects output for both the steel making ingredients to grow in the current fiscal year, it said Wednesday. The miner's total iron ore production for 2016-2017 stood at 231 ...>>>
Brazilian ethanol prices rise on expected gasoline tax hikes: sources Jul 20,2017
Domestic Brazilian ethanol prices rose Wednesday after reports in the local media pointed to an increased chance of the federal government imposing higher taxes on gasoline, sources said. Talk of increases in taxes such as CIDE or PIS/Cofins have intensified in recent days as the government tries to meet budget targets, said financial newspaper ...>>>
South Africa's TFR completes maintenance on coal transport line Jul 20,2017
South Africa's Transnet Freight Rail completed scheduled maintenance on its coal transport lines Monday evening after a one-week shutdown, a company spokesman said Tuesday. The planned shutdown was carried out to perform annual maintenance work on the 580-km line, which carries 72 million-74 million mt of thermal coal from the Witbank coal area ...>>>
100 Spot Commodities Price Chart - 18/07/2017 Jul 20,2017
It was assessed by SunSirs that in the tracked 100 spot commodities,42 commodities increased in prices, 22 fell and 35 remained unchanged on 18/07/2017.The largest rises were Asphalt (4.33%),Iron ore (2.16%),PVC (2.04%),while the largest falls were Dri...>>>
Profits of China coal producers surge on capacity cuts Jul 21,2017
Chinese coal producers that for years struggled to keep afloat are bouncing back with substantial profit growth as the industry's ongoing downsizing has helped prop up prices and regain a supply-demand balance. Combined profits of large coal enterprises with annual turnover of at least 20 million yuan (nearly 3 million U.S. dollars) came at 123.34...>>>
Formosa Plastics' VCM issue limiting PVC availability for August: sources Jul 21,2017
An ongoing vinyl chloride monomer issue at Formosa Plastics' Point Comfort, Texas, plant is impacting downstream polyvinyl chloride production, and limiting availability for August, market sources said Thursday. Multiple sources -- including some with knowledge of business plans -- said this week Formosa Plastics would not be offering spot expor...>>>
BASF resolves butyl acetate feedstock problems Jul 21,2017
German petrochemicals producer BASF has resolved its butyl acetate feedstock problems and has returned to normal supplies to contract customers, according to a source close to the company. The butac unit has been under force majeure since October but has been maintaining production. BASF experienced a problem with the feedstock, butanol, supp...>>>
Global copper surplus for January-April rises to 80,000 mt: ICSG Jul 21,2017
Global supply/demand factors indicate an 80,000 mt surplus in the refined copper market for the first four months of this year, according to preliminary data released Thursday by the International Copper Study Group. "This is mainly due to the decline in Chinese apparent demand; China currently represents 48% of the world copper refined usage," ...>>>
US steel plate prices soften during summer slowdown Jul 21,2017
Steel plate prices in the US market softened slightly Thursday with continued lackluster demand, market sources said this week. S&P Global Platts on Thursday lowered its assessment of A36 commodity plate to $690-$710/st ex-works Southeastern US mill, down from $700-$720/st Wednesday. For a while plate prices were steady at $740/st on a delive...>>>
Anglo American's Kumba iron ore output up sharply on year Jul 21,2017
Anglo American's South African subsidiary, Kumba Iron Ore, saw Q2 production at its Sishen mine rise 38% year on year to 7.9 million mt due to "improved mining productivity [resulting from] fleet efficiencies and higher plant yields," the company said Thursday. This output also marked a quarter-on-quarter rise of 3%, the company said in its late...>>>
Anglo American's Q2 copper output down 2% to 140,800 mt Jul 21,2017
South African Anglo American produced 140,800 mt copper on a contained metal basis in the second quarter of this year, down 2% on the year and 1% from Q1, the miner said Thursday. Its copper output in the first half of this year was 283,400 mt, down 3% year-on-year. Copper output in Q2, while broadly unchanged, was impacted by the temporary s...>>>
South Korea's Hyundai Steel raises bid price for Japanese H2 ferrous scrap Jul 21,2017
South Korea's leading electric arc furnace mill, Hyundai Steel, raised its bid price Thursday for Japanese H2 ferrous scrap by Yen 2,500/mt from its latest bid on June 27 to Yen 28,500/mt ($254/mt) FOB, a source close to the company said. The steelmaker received a total of around 150,000 mt of offer volume and booked a total of around 60,000 mt ...>>>
UK generator Drax looks at conversion to natural gas for remaining coal units Jul 21,2017
Drax is considering conversion to natural gas of coal-fired capacity at its North Yorkshire site, the UK generator said Wednesday. Announcing six-month results, Drax chief executive Dorothy Thompson said the company's research and innovation team had identified "potentially attractive options to repurpose our remaining coal assets." This was ...>>>