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Before we head into the weekend, let’s take a look back at the week that was in metals storylines here on MetalMiner, including Stuart Burns on LME steel contracts, the green revolution in aluminum and much more.
Regarding the LME steel contracts, Burns noted, “For over 200 years, the London Metal Exchange (LME) has provided the trade – producers, traders and consumers – the opportunity to hedge their risk across a growing range of base metals.
“However, only recently have exchanges such as the LME, the U.S.’s CME and the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) in China introduced products allowing the trade to hedge raw material and finished steel price risk.”
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For the buyers and category managers out there, especially those of you deep in the weeds of buying and managing commodities, here’s a quick rundown of news and thoughts from particular commodity markets.
MetalMiner, a sister site of ours, scours the landscape for what matters. This week:
Iron ore outlook
Amid recovering steel demand in large part powered globally by China’s stimulus-driven recovery efforts the demand for iron ore, too, has surged.
MetalMiner’s Stuart Burns delved into the steelmaking material and asked if it has already reached peak prices for 2021.
“Finished steel prices in China have fluctuated strongly through the winter,” Burns wrote. “Rebar prices are coming under considerable pressure, but coil prices are holding up well. That disparity underlines the relative strength of manufacturing compared to construction.
Updated
Festive fundraising at Thomas Middlecott Academy, in Kirton.
Thomas Middlecott Academy, in Kirton, and Bruce Wallis Academy, in Coningsby, were the David Ross Education Trust sites that took part in the fundraiser.
It involved students and staff either running or walking a course alongside their classmates, dressed in Santa hats and suits.
The money will be streamed into the trust’s Inspiration Fund, which supports enrichment programmes and activities, such as sports clubs, music festivals and lessons, across its 34 schools.
Another scene from the Santa Run fundraiser .
Pupils from reception to Year 10 took part in the run. Due to coronavirus measures still in place across these schools, pupils ran and walked within their own bubbles safely at staggered times throughout the day.
Hundreds of tiny Santas raise more than £26,700 with festive fun run at schools around Northamptonshire
More than 1,000 pupils from 14 schools across Northamptonshire raised more than £26,700 with a festive fun run dressed as Father Christmas.
Sunday, 3rd January 2021, 10:33 am
Students and staff from David Ross Education Trust schools either ran or walked a course within their bubbles earlier this month before the end of term.
The money will go towards the trust’s Inspiration Fund, which supports enrichment programmes and activities, such as sports clubs, music festivals and instrument lessons.
In a display of solidarity, almost every school in the trust took part, and over 2,000 students raised an astonishing £50,000.
Steel, Aluminum, Copper, Stainless, Rare Earth, Metal Prices, Forecasting | MetalMiner
U.S. Steel announced it will offer a new sustainable steel product line called verdeX™; meanwhile,
Intel will invest $20 billion toward two new factories to serve the “incredible global demand for semiconductor manufacturing”; and, lastly,
Century Aluminum announced a power contract in South Carolina for its Mt. Holly aluminum smelter.
Volatility is the name of the game. Do you have a steel buying strategy that can handle the ups and downs?
U.S. Steel unveils new sustainable steel
No matter the sector, sustainability is a concept that continues to gain traction and not just from environmentally conscious individual consumers.