If you have any comments on the discontinuation of the lithium contract prices, please contact Zihao Li or Ewan Thomson by email at pricing@fastmarkets.com. Please add the subject heading: “FAO: Zihao Li/Ewan Thomson re: Lithium contract price discontinuation.”

Please indicate if your comments are confidential. Fastmarkets will consider all comments received and, upon request, will make comments not marked as confidential available.

To see all Fastmarkets pricing methodology and specification documents, please go to https://www.fastmarkets.com/methodology.

The post Discontinuation of lithium contract price assessments: pricing notice appeared first on Fastmarkets.

The affected prices are in the Fastmarkets Ags, Ags Grains, Industrial Ags, Oils, Fats, Animal Proteins and Biofuels pricing packages.

For more information, or to provide feedback on the publication of these assessments, or if you would like to provide price information by becoming a data submitter to these assessments, please contact Chloe Krimmel by email at: pricing@fastmarkets.com. Please add the subject heading “FAO: Chloe Krimmel, re: US agricultural products price assessments.”

Please indicate if comments are confidential. Fastmarkets will consider all comments received and will make comments not marked as confidential available upon request.

To see all Fastmarkets’ pricing methodology and specification documents, go to: https://www.fastmarkets.com/methodology.

The post Pause in publication of US agricultural products price assessments appeared first on Fastmarkets.

MB-CU-0403 Copper grade A cathode premium, cif Shanghai, $/tonne
MB-CU-0380 Copper grade A cathode ER premium, cif Shanghai, $/tonne
MB-CU-0384 Copper grade A cathode SX-EW premium, cif Shanghai, $/tonne
MB-CU-0405 Copper grade A cathode premium, in-whs Shanghai, $/tonne
MB-CU-0383 Copper grade A cathode ER premium, bonded in-whs Shanghai, $/tonne
MB-CU-0382 Copper grade A cathode SX-EW premium, bonded in-whs Shanghai, $/tonne

These premiums are a part of the Fastmarkets Base Metals package.

For more information or to provide feedback on the delayed publication of these premiums or if you would like to provide price information by becoming a data submitter to these premiums, please contact Callum Perry by email at: pricing@fastmarkets.com. Please add the subject heading “FAO: Callum Perry, re: Copper Shanghai Premiums.”

Please indicate if comments are confidential. Fastmarkets will consider all comments received and will make comments not marked as confidential available upon request.

To see all Fastmarkets pricing methodology and specification documents, go to https://www.fastmarkets.com/methodology.

The post Delayed publication of Shanghai copper premiums appeared first on Fastmarkets.

“Primarily, soybean oil is now available at a considerable discount among four vegetable oils (palm oil, soybean oil, sunoil and rapeseed oil) thanks to strong soybean crops in North and South America. The election of [Donald] Trump as US President has also raised questions about US biofuel policy, pushing out excessive soybean oil from the US markets via export routes,” Anilkumar Bagani, head of research at Mumbai-based vegoils broker Sunvin Group, told Fastmarkets.

Over the past month, export prices for sunflower oil have fallen by around 7-10%, or $80-130 per tonne, depending on the destination. On Tuesday December 17, according to Fastmarkets’ sources, sunflower oil was offered at an average of $1,160 per tonne CIF Mersin and CIF India, delivery in December-January.

Prices from European buyers have fallen by $80-90 per tonne, or almost 7%, over the past month to $1,180-1,190 per tonne CIF Seville, delivery in January-February. Prices have stabilized on the sellers’ side, while buyers are not showing interest.

“Relatively high prices for sunflower oil have reduced consumer demand for it for a period of time, while cheap soybean oil is putting pressure on sunflower oil in destinations where they can replace each other,” Sergiy Repetskyi, managing partner of Sunstone Brokers, said.

The spread between India soybean oil and sunflower oil this week reached $95 per tonne for January delivery, sources told Fastmarkets. On Tuesday, the spread has significantly narrowed to an average of $30 per tonne as a result of the continuing decline in vegoil prices.

On Tuesday, soybean oil was offered at $1,132-1,150 per tonne CFR India for delivery in January, depending on origin, and sunflower oil was offered at $1,160 per tonne CIF India for delivery in December-January, according to Fastmarkets’ sources.

Ukrainian sellers attempt to keep prices high, despite external pressures

For a long time, Ukrainian sellers have been trying to keep sunflower oil offer prices high, given the high cost of processed raw materials and low availability of seeds due to weak sales by farmers.

However, aggressive offers of Russian sunflower oil and the willingness to sell it cheaper have put additional pressure on the market, especially in Turkey.

“At origins, we see no super stock but a good enough volume, which is looking at demand on the spot and prices are under pressure as sellers want to move their stock before the New Year,” Repetskyi said.

“Turkey is well covered for the short term. There is still demand for the first quarter of 2025, and many Russian sellers have scared off buyers, but this is a typical buyer tendency to wait and see while the market is coming down,” Onat Angi, chairman of the Solventum brokerage.

“As soon as Russian sellers started dumping spot to avoid a higher export tax in January, they triggered a sales rush and scared off buyers in all directions,” the chairman added.

At the same time, a number of sources suggest a resumption of price growth after the New Year holidays, and one reason cited is the reduction in crushing by Ukrainian plants due to the suspension of processing or due to negative margins.

“Black Sea crush will slow down for the Christmas and New Year period first due to poor coverage of the plants. Most likely, we will not see much activity from buyers before January 10,” Repetskyi said.

According to Ukrainian customs statistics, sunflower oil exports from September to December 16 amounted to 1.5 million tonnes at the beginning of the 2024/25 season, which is in line with last year’s level for the same period.

According to Ukrainian analytical agency APK-Inform, sunflower exports in the 2024/25 marketing year could amount to 5.5 million tonnes.

However, some market sources doubt this figure, given the low sunflower harvest in Ukraine and estimated exports at 5.1 million tonnes.

The post Black Sea sunflower oil prices fall at least 7% over past month, continue to decline appeared first on Fastmarkets.

In September, Fastmarkets launched western softwood GMA Grade A pallet prices in six key delivered markets: Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth and New York City. This price data and analytics service, the first of its kind in industry, can help any entity dealing with palletized cargo to understand how market shifts will impact their business.

Here, we take a look back on the first three months of price data to understand three key trends in the market and how these impact the price of pallets, an essential component of global supply chains.

Three key trends

• The results of the US presidential election, and President-elect Donald Trump’s subsequent tariff announcement
• Oversupply in the used pallet market
• Seasonal push across the holiday season

September pallet price data

The first edition of the pallet newsletter came as the Federal Reserve began its rate-cutting in September 2024, setting the stage for US housing starts to bounce back after July 2024 had the lowest housing starts since June 2020.

Overall, trends that dominated over the summer held as the bulk of unmodified or unenhanced GMA pallets in the Seattle market traded in an $11.00-13.00 per pallet range with premium GMA pallets trading in the $15.00-17.00 range. Over the course of September, market participants continued to report that those ranges remained in place for months. 

Producers reported persistently underwhelming production of new softwood GMA A-grade 48×40 pallets with ample availability for prompt delivery. Some sources reported a slight uptick in agricultural sector purchasing and some specialty manufacturers noted a pickup following the rate cut decision. However, the new GMA pallet sector continued to lag. Most producers reported that they did not expect a significant change this calendar year.

In most key delivered markets, mills continued to struggle against ample availability of $5.00-7.00 “good to average” condition used pallets. Market participants reported that used pallet inventories were diminishing, but estimates of these inventories were wide ranging. 

October pallet price data

In October, the National Retail Federation projected a 3% increase in holiday sales from the year prior, one of the first indications of how busy the 2024 holiday season would be. The October edition of the pallet newsletter analysed how this outlook would impact the market amid an increasingly saturated market for used pallets.

Alongside the forecasted holiday uptick, western softwood US pallet manufacturers continued to face steep competition from alternative species and an oversupplied used pallet market. 

Fastmarkets assessed pallets, western softwood, GMA A-grade delivered Seattle at $11.00-17.00 per pallet on October 30. This was unchanged from recent weeks. However, the other major market in the western softwood producing region, San Francisco, was another story. 

Fastmarkets assessed pallets, western softwood, GMA A-grade delivered San Francisco at $10.50-16.50 per pallet on October 30. This assessment reflects a -$0.75 decline to the low and high of the previous range.

While local low-grade lumber prices have remained fairly stable for the last month, competition from alternative species and a competitive used market resulted in some manufacturers lowering prices. Good quality used B-grade pallets and excellent quality block pallets were offered from $8-10 in the downtown San Francisco area.

Although most producers did not report changes in their assessments of the market, comparable erosion in asking prices were observed in Chicago, Los Angeles and Dallas-Fort Worth, with comparable B-grade and off-spec pallets available at competitive prices below recent western softwood basic unmodified GMA Grade-A 48×40 pallet rates.

At present, there is ample availability of new western softwood pallets on the market for prompt delivery. Low-grade western softwood producers reported that while agricultural and manufacturing purchases have picked up slightly in the last month, they have encountered resistance from pallet producers who are hemmed in by current market conditions.

Further complicating matters, tightness in the green Fir market pushed more western softwood pallet producers to the dry market. This corresponded with reports from dry low-grade manufacturers who recently noted a slight uptick in sales volumes to the pallet sector.

November pallet price data

The most recent edition of the newsletter followed the results of the US presidential election and President-elect Donald Trump’s tariff announcement, including insights into the lessons to be learnt from the fallout of Trump’s 2018 tariff increases.

Overall, western softwood US pallet manufacturers reported a seasonal uptick in demand as holiday retail sales picked up and buyers turned their attention to Q1 2025. Fastmarkets assessed pallets, western softwood, GMA A-grade delivered Seattle at $11.00-17.00 per pallet on November 27, unchanged from the previous month.

While producers benefited from an uptick in sales, recent pushback on prices due to the continued glut of used and lower-quality pallets stymied any significant upward momentum. The other major market in the western softwood producing region, San Francisco, also remained stable this month.

Fastmarkets assessed pallets, western softwood, GMA A-grade delivered San Francisco at $10.50-16.50 per pallet on November 27.

Competition from used and lower-quality pallets remained steep. Good quality used B-grade pallets and excellent quality block pallets were offered from $8-10 in the downtown San Francisco area.

Trading ranges narrowed in New York City and Dallas-Fort Worth as lower-priced Southern Yellow Pine hit the market.

Fastmarkets assessed pallets, western softwood, GMA A-grade delivered New York at $10.50-16.50 per pallet on November 27, a $0.75 decline to the low and a $1.75 decline to the high over the previous month.

Producers in these regions faced steeper competition from alternative grades in addition to lower-priced Southern Yellow Pine. Good quality B-Grade pallets were readily available at significant discounts, capping profits. Multiple producers reported switching to Southern Yellow Pine this month as it became more readily available.

In addition to the seasonal retail holiday spike, buyers reported that they are turning their attention to Q1 of next year. With a new administration and tariffs looming, numerous large pallet buyers decided to make extra purchases to prepare for an uptick as next year’s activity gets underway.

Conclusion

The first three months of pallet price data was influenced by the used pallet market, which has been in a state of oversupply in recent months. Competition from the used pallet market resulted in some manufacturers lowering prices.

The results of the US presidential election have also had a significant impact on market sentiment following President-elect Donald Trump’s announcement of planned tariffs for on imports to the US from certain countries.

Finally, holiday retail sales have continued to pick up over the last three months. The 2024 holiday season is shaping up to be the busiest since 2021, driven by record spending forecasts and a projected 3% increase in holiday sales from the year prior, according to the National Retail Federation.

At Fastmarkets, our price data, analysis and forecasting helps you to navigate dynamic markets and stay ahead of price fluctuations. Speak to one of our experts today to find out more.

The post Three key factors impacting our pallet price data appeared first on Fastmarkets.

This price is part of Fastmarkets’ US Animal Proteins package.

For more information or to provide feedback on this correction notice, or if you would like to provide price information by becoming a data submitter to this price, please contact Chloe Krimmel by email at: pricing@fastmarkets.com. Please add the subject heading “FAO: Chloe Krimmel re: feathermeal, AL/GA.”

Please indicate if comments are confidential. Fastmarkets will consider all comments received and will make comments not marked as confidential available upon request.

To see all Fastmarkets pricing methodology and specification documents, go to https://www.fastmarkets.com/methodology.

The post Correction to feathermeal, fob Alabama/Georgia on December 17 appeared first on Fastmarkets.

At the time, Fastmarkets asked market participants whether the export curbs were a political symbol or a real threat. The timing of the announcement — shortly after the US had announced fresh export restrictions on advanced chipmaking to China — led some market participants to suggest the move was part of a technology and trade war tit-for-tat.

A year and half later, the same question persists.

China announced on Tuesday December 3 that it was tightening its existing export controls on gallium and germanium (and antimony and graphite, which were covered in subsequent export controls), explicitly prohibiting shipments of both metals to the US.

The decision raised new concerns in the market and the media due to the criticality of these metals across a variety of high-tech and particularly chipmaking sectors. The United States Geological Survey report published in November estimated that a total ban of exports of gallium and germanium from China could cost the US economy about $3.4 billion in economic output.

Again, the timing of the new announcement — the day after the US announced a new wave of restrictions targeting China’s chipmaking sector — raised concerns among market participants about geopolitical posturing.

And the fact that direct exports of gallium and germanium from China have de-facto been blocked to the US since the export control first came into effect also raised questions. China’s customs data shows no exports of either metal to the US since the control was implemented.

This has led some market participants to believe that there will be little difference under the new tightened regime, Fastmarkets heard.

“Technically speaking, nothing should change… [China] just officialized something that they were already doing,” a European trader said.

Indeed, the impact on gallium and germanium prices in European markets was limited following Tuesday’s announcement.

Fastmarkets’ assessment of gallium 99.99% Ga min, in-whs Rotterdam was $470-550 per kg on December 6, flat on the session before and since November 8.

But gallium market participants in Europe faced difficulty in finding offers, with stockholders saying they were staying on the sidelines to assess the effects of a tighter implementation of China’s export controls.

Fastmarkets’ price for germanium 99.999% Ge, in-whs Rotterdam was $2,900-3,000 per kg on December 6, narrowing up by $50 per kg from $2,850-3,000 per kg in the previous session on December 4.

Germanium supply in Europe has been tight for some time, however, and that price increase was not related to panic in the market, but to a continuation of the tightness, sources told Fastmarkets.

Closing loopholes

Although market participants said that an effective prohibition on exporting material to the US was already in place, some questioned whether the new announcement may be targeting indirect exports of Chinese material into the US.

The latest announcement warned that violations of the measure would lead to legal consequences, particularly for parties transferring or providing these items to US entities without authorization.

Data from the United States International Trade Commission (USITC) shows the country has been importing some gallium and germanium of Chinese origin.

The US has imported some 1.1 tonnes of China-origin gallium and 4.5 tonnes of China-origin germanium since the export control first came into effect last year, according to the data, which is available up to October of this year.

Per the US Census Department, the country of origin refers to where the goods were produced or where they underwent a tariff classification change indicating a “substantial transformation.”

The data therefore does not necessarily reflect that the US is somehow indirectly importing material from China; instead, it could be buying material from pre-export-control stocks in Europe and elsewhere, when exports from China did not require end-user documentation.

Either way, the initial implementation of China’s export control required foreign buyers to identify their material’s end-user before receiving a license to ship material, before exports were considered on a case-by-case basis. The end-user classification is understood to refer to someone transforming material to a sufficient extent to change its relevant customs code.

That classification would likely make any entity exporting gallium or germanium recycling feedstock from China and refining that into metal as an end user, even if they are then shipping that metal to the US, market participants told Fastmarkets.

But they questioned how practical enforcing an export control lower down the value chain could be, while warning it could lead midstream gallium and germanium consumers exercise more caution in their sales into the US if they are sourcing metal from China.

“Are you going to risk your China sourcing ability for a small US sale?” a second European trader said.

China-based exporters said it was too early to say how the tighter export controls would affect shipments in the long run, although they warned of longer processing times for exports to be approved due to extra due diligence requirements.

Some market participants have reported that processing times for exports have been longer anyway. Exports of gallium were initially frozen when the export control came into effect, but, since then, shipments have been to close to their historic volumes.

Furthermore, in October, the most recent month for which China’s trade flow data is available, gallium exports declined precipitously, leading some sources to ponder that tighter due diligence requirements were already being placed on shipments.

Want to find out more about our critical minerals price data, forecasts and market insights? Visit our dedicated critical minerals market hub here.

The post China’s tighter gallium, germanium export controls: more of the same or a shift in approach? appeared first on Fastmarkets.

Fastmarkets’ decision to discontinue these assessments follows a six-month consultation that started on October 23, 2023. An extended period of discussions with a wide cross-section of market participants in the lithium industry followed.

The feedback received alongside interrogation of existing data collected by Fastmarkets suggested that these prices no longer reflect the dynamics of the physical lithium market. The evolving lithium marketplace in recent years has resulted in long-term contract negotiations that are increasingly linked to spot price indexation. This evolution has resulted in an extended period of low liquidity in the data collection of the lithium contract prices.

The affected prices are:
• MB-LI-0031 Lithium hydroxide monohydrate LiOH.H2O 56.5% LiOH min, battery grade, contract price cif China, Japan & Korea
• MB-LI-0027 Lithium carbonate 99.5% Li2CO3 min, battery grade, contract price cif China, Japan & Korea
• MB-LI-0030 Lithium hydroxide monohydrate LiOH.H2O 56.5% LiOH min, technical and industrial grades, contract price cif China, Japan & Korea
• MB-LI-0026 Lithium carbonate 99% Li2CO3 min, technical and industrial grades, contract price cif China, Japan & Korea
• MB-LI-0024 Lithium hydroxide monohydrate LiOH.H2O 56.5% LiOH min, battery grade, contract price ddp Europe and US
• MB-LI-0022 Lithium carbonate 99.5% Li2CO3 min, battery grade, contract price ddp Europe and US
• MB-LI-0020 Lithium hydroxide monohydrate LiOH.H2O 56.5% LiOH min, technical and industrial grades, contract price ddp Europe and US
• MB-LI-0018 Lithium carbonate 99% Li2CO3 min, technical and industrial grades, contract price ddp Europe and US

All short-term forecasts associated with these prices produced by Fastmarkets’ research team, if any, will also be discontinued.

If you have any comments on the discontinuation of the lithium contract prices, please contact Zihao Li or Ewan Thomson by email at pricing@fastmarkets.com. Please add the subject heading: “FAO: Zihao Li/Ewan Thomson re Lithium contract price discontinuation.”

Please indicate if your comments are confidential. Fastmarkets will consider all comments received and, upon request, will make comments not marked as confidential available.

To see all Fastmarkets pricing methodology and specification documents, please go to https://www.fastmarkets.com/methodology.

The post Discontinuation of lithium contract price assessments (reminder) appeared first on Fastmarkets.

The original consultation notice can be found here.

The code, name and current specifications for the affected markets are as follows:

MB-STE-0423 Steel scrap shredded, index, delivered Midwest mill, $/gross ton
Quality: ISRI Grade 211 – shredded scrap Homogeneous iron and steel scrap magnetically separated, originating from automobiles, unprepared No1 and No2 steel, miscellaneous baling and sheet scrap. Average density 70 pounds per cubic foot.
Quantity: Min 500 gross tons
Location: Delivered US Midwest mill – any mill in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa and NW Ohio Timing: Within 30 days
Unit: US dollars per gross ton
Payment terms: Net 30 days post delivery
Publication date: 10th of each month by 4pm New York time (or following working day)
Notes: All origins

MB-STE-0424 Steel scrap No1 heavy melt, index, delivered Midwest mill, $/gross ton
Quality: ISRI Grade 200 – No1 heavy melting steel. Wrought iron and/or steel scrap 1/4 inch and over in thickness. Individual pieces not over 60 x 24 inches (charging box size) prepared in a manner to insure compact charging ISRI Grade 202 – No1 heavy melting steel 5 feet x 18 inches. Wrought iron and/or steel scrap 1/4 inch and over in thickness. Individual pieces not over 60 x 18 inches (charging box size) prepared in a manner to insure compact charging.
Quantity: Min 500 gross tons
Location: Delivered Midwest mill – any mill in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa and NW Ohio
Timing: Within 30 days Unit: US dollars per gross ton
Payment terms: Net 30 days post delivery
Publication: 10th of each month by 4pm New York time (or following working day)
Notes: All origins

MB-STE-0882 Steel scrap No1 busheling, indicator, delivered Midwest mill, $/gross ton
Quality: Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) Grade 207 – No1 busheling Ferrous busheling. Compliant to ISRI Specifications 7 No1 busheling. Clean steel scrap, maximum size 2 feet by 5 feet, including new factory busheling (sheet clippings, stampings, etc). May not include old auto body and fender stock. Free of metal coated, limed, vitreous enameled and electrical sheet containing more than 0.5% silicon.
Quantity: Min 500 gross tons
Location: Delivered US Midwest mill – any mill in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa and northwest Ohio
Timing: Within 30 days Unit: US dollars per gross ton
Payment terms: Net 30 days post delivery
Publication: Daily from 4-5pm New York time

The realignment does not include the following grade:

MB-STE-0422 Steel scrap No1 busheling, index, delivered Midwest mill, $/gross ton

Fastmarkets will continue to publish MB-STE-0422 steel scrap No1 busheling, index, delivered Midwest mill, $/gross ton throughout 2025 to support existing contracts settled against that index.

These prices are a part of the Fastmarkets scrap package.

The extended consultation period for this proposed discontinuation starts on December 13 and will end on January 12, 2025. An update to this notice will be published on January 13.

All short-term forecasts associated with these prices produced by the Fastmarkets research team, if any, will also be discontinued.

To provide feedback on this proposal to discontinue, or if you would like to provide price information by becoming a data submitter to these prices, please contact Sean Barry by email at: pricing@fastmarkets.com. Please add the subject heading “FAO: Sean Barry, re: US ferrous scrap indexes for shredded and heavy melt, busheling indicator.”

Please indicate if comments are confidential. Fastmarkets will consider all comments received and will make comments not marked as confidential available upon request.

To see all Fastmarkets’ pricing methodology and specification documents, go to https://www.fastmarkets.com/methodology.

The post Extension of consultation period on the proposal to discontinue US Midwest ferrous scrap shred, heavy melt indices, busheling indicator appeared first on Fastmarkets.

You can find the current methodology for MB-Al-0300 Aluminium 6063 extrusion billet premium, ddp Italy (Brescia region), $/tonne; MB-AL-0380 Aluminium 6063 extrusion billet premium, ddp North Germany (Ruhr region), inferred low-carbon midpoint, $/tonne; and MB-AL-0299 Aluminium 6063 extrusion billet premium, ddp Spain, $/tonne, here.

Fastmarkets welcomes responses and feedback on the two proposals outlined below:

Proposal 1

• Additional CBAM costs will be incorporated into aluminium 6063 billet premiums ddp Italy, ddp North Germany and ddp Spain from January 2026.
• As a result, any additional CBAM costs will be included in aluminium 6063 billet premiums ddp Italy, ddp North Germany and ddp Spain.
• With this proposal, Fastmarkets would not price specific brands or publish a CBAM reference, but would instead provide consistent updates in pricing rationales and news coverage about the impact of CBAM on MB-AL-0300, MB-AL-0380 and MB-AL-0299.

Proposal 2

• Fastmarkets will launch additional aluminium 6063 billet premiums, reference in ddp Italy, ddp North Germany and ddp Spain that include the CBAM cost.
• This proposal would have no impact on MB-AL-0300, MB-AL-0380 and MB-AL-0299.
• There would be no change the existing data collection methodology associated with these three premiums.

Neither proposal will have any impact on historic data of MB-AL-0300, MB-AL-0380 and MB-AL-0299.

Please note that these proposals will be subject to change following industry feedback.

To provide feedback on this consultation, or if you would like to provide price information by becoming a data submitter, please contact Sayaka Kurata by email at: pricing@fastmarkets.com. Please add the subject heading “FAO: Sayaka Kurata re: aluminium billet premiums and CBAM.”

Please indicate if comments are confidential. Fastmarkets will consider all comments received and will make comments not marked as confidential available upon request.

To see all Fastmarkets’ pricing methodology and specification documents, please go to https://www.fastmarkets.com/methodology.

The post Open consultation on methodology for aluminium extrusion billet premiums ddp Italy, ddp North Germany, ddp Spain in relation to CBAM appeared first on Fastmarkets.