· Metals: Copper 0.0% to $4.38lb, iron ore -3.26% to US$152.6/t, Gold 0.3% to US$1,814/oz
· Energy: Brent crude -0.6% to US$73.0/bbl, WTI -1.0% to US$68.5/bbl, thermal coal 3.2% to $173.6/t
· Keyovernight stock moves: BHP LND -1.0%, Rio Tinto LND -0.4%, S32 (LDN) +7.8%, Anglo -0.5%, Glencore -1.5%, Vale -1.3%, Alcoa +0.7%, Shell -1.5%, BP -1.8%, Exxon -1.2%, Chevron -1.6%, ConocoPhillips -1.2%
· GlobalIndices: S&P 500 -0.13%, DOW -0.11% & FTSE -0.40%
Seaborne iron ore prices fell as weakening demand outlookdue to the steel production curbs retook center stage with the 62% Fe Iron OreIndex at $152.60/dry mt CFR North China on Aug. 31, down $5.15/dmt from Aug.30. Buying interest in the seaborne market softened further over the concerns of production curbs in the coming months. Plenty of spot cargoes were heard on offer for September and October loading in the secondary market. According to sources, Australian miner FMG slashed term contract discounts further for September loading cargoes such as Super Special Fines, or SSF, and Fortescue Blend Fines, or FBF. SSF discounts widened 3% on the month to 30%, while FBF discounts widened 7% on the month to 26%, both basis the September average of the IODEX. (Platts)
Iron ore is wrapping up a back-to-back, double-digitpercentage loss this month and further declines are on the cards for September.With Beijing driving home a campaign to reduce steel output, China’s PMI data dump reinforces the picture of softening demand. The breakout print for the gargantuan steel industry is a woeful 41.8, undermined by a steep fall in new orders. That’ll spell reduced demand for cargoes from Australia and Brazil. (Bloomberg)
Andrew Forrest, the billionaire founder of iron ore giantFortescue Metals Group Ltd., upped his bid to acquire a nickel miner active inCanada’s highly-prospective Ring of Fire region to trump an offer from BHPGroup. Forrest’s Wyloo Metals Pty Ltd. offered to buy Noront Resources Ltd. for C$0.70 per share in cash, beating the C$0.55 per share offer made by BHP in July that Noront’s board agreed to support. Wyloo’s proposal had a higher certainty of success because it already owns about 37.5% of Noront’s shares and does not intend to support BHP’s offer, Wyloo said in a statement. (Bloomberg)
China’s push to reduce carbon emissions is providing atailwind for steel producers worldwide as it limits output from the country andpushes down the cost of key ingredient iron ore, according to Nippon SteelCorp. Japan’s biggest producer of the metal is on track to exceed its full-year profit target as elevated steel prices and the recent slump in iron ore widen its margins, Executive Vice President Takahiro Morisaid in an interview. Steel output from the world’s biggest producer slumped in July amid a push by Beijing to curb pollution from the sector that accounts for 15% of China’s carbon emissions. The drive to cut production, which is expected to continue through the rest of the year, has pushed down the price of iron ore, the main ingredient used to make steel, by around 30% since mid-July. Chinese hot-rolled steel prices, meanwhile, have remained stable over the last few months. (Bloomberg)
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