Posted on 13 Aug 2025
Chinese HRC offers cross $500 in Vietnam
Hot rolled coil import prices continue to surge in Vietnam, Kallanish notes. This is tandem with the continued price gains in the Chinese domestic futures and spot markets.
Quotes for China-origin 1,900-2,000mm width, 3-12mm thickness Q235 grade HRC for October shipment have risen once again. Offers are now at $505-510/tonne cfr Vietnam, up from $490-495/t cfr last Friday and from $484-486/t cfr on 4 August.
Indonesia’s Dexin Steel is aiming to export 3mm base thickness SAE1006/SS400 grade HRC at $500/t fob, with freight estimated at $14-20/t depending on tonnage. However, there are also offers for Dexin HRC for shipment by end-October heard at $505-510/t cfr.
A trader reports hearing 30,000 tonnes of Dexin HRC concluded at $503/t cfr last week but he is uncertain who the buyer was. Another however says he heard Dexin's HRC offered at $503/t cfr but no deals were transacted.
There have been no recent HRC offers from Japan or South Korea quoted in Vietnam. But trading sources expect offers would be at around $530/t cfr Vietnam.
Meanwhile, domestic mills have benefited from the surge in Chinese HRC prices. Hoa Phat Group is heard to have sold out all its HRC allocations released last week and rival mill Formosa (FHS), which has released its latest allocations, will follow suit.
“Formosa will sell out soon and customers are trying to get as many allocations as possible,” a trader says. “While HRC demand is so-so, Hoa Phat and FHS prices are good because there is no cheap China HRC now.” The strong dollar is still firm against the VND and there could be further strengthening in the fourth quarter, he adds. Formosa’s deadline for its latest offer is 13 August.
The steelmaker announced on 8 August its domestic non-skin passed SAE 1006 HRC prices for September/October shipment at the equivalent of $507-517/t cfr southern Vietnam, up $10/t on-month.
Source:Kallanish
Here’s what Putin really wants from Trump – and it’s not peace in Ukraine
A resident looks at the site of an apartment building hit during Russian missile and drone strikes in Kyiv, Ukraine, on July 31. Thomas Peter/Reuters
Anchorage, Alaska — Alaska is unlikely to have been on many peoples’ bingo cards as the venue for a key summit between the leaders of the United States and Russia.
Yet America’s biggest, remotest state is where Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin are now set to meet for one of the most potentially consequential encounters of their presidencies.
That’s certainly the view from Moscow, where pro-Kremlin propagandists are already flushed with anticipation at the benefits this much-anticipated face-to-face meeting will deliver.
Or, more specifically, will deliver for Putin.
Firstly, the fact a summit with the US president is being held at all is a massive win for the Kremlin.
“No one is talking about Russia’s international isolation anymore, or about our strategic defeat,” wrote Alexander Kots, a prominent pro-Kremlin military blogger on his popular social media channel. He added that the Alaska meeting had “every chance to become historic.”
He may be right. A presidential summit allows Putin to be seen back at the top table of international diplomacy, while thumbing his nose at critics and nations who want him shunned if not arrested on charges of war crimes in Ukraine.
And a summit in the US state of Alaska, of all places, is red meat to resurgent Russian nationalists who still bluster about the territory being rightfully theirs.
Just across the Bering Strait from the Chukotka region in the Russian Far East, Alaska was once a remote possession of the Russian Empire before being sold to the United States in 1867 for what was, even then, a paltry sum of $7.2 million, about 2 cents an acre.
The idea that Moscow got a raw deal still lingers and a visit to “our Alaska,” as one prominent Russian state TV host dubbed it, bolsters Putin’s nationalist credentials. Video clips of Trump misspeaking at a White House news conference ahead of the summit, saying he was going to “Russia” to meet Putin, have also been trending on Russian social media with captions saying the US president had finally “admitted it is ours.”
For the rest of the world, though, the sole focus of this presidential summit is the war in Ukraine and whether Russia is prepared to make any concessions to end it. The White House has said Trump expects to focus squarely on ending the war in Ukraine, leaving other issues Moscow has said could be up for discussion for another time.
On Wednesday, Trump promised “very severe consequences” if Putin doesn’t agree to end his war, following a call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders.
But so far there’s been little sign of real compromise from the Kremlin, which regards itself as having the upper hand on the grinding Ukrainian battlefield. As recently as last month, on a phone call with Trump, Putin reportedly reiterated that Russia would “continue to pursue its goals to address the root causes” of the conflict in Ukraine – these “root causes” having previously included long-held Russian grievances that include Ukraine’s existence as a sovereign state, and NATO’s eastward expansion since the end of the Cold War. On Wednesday, a Russian foreign ministry spokesman said the country’s position on Ukraine was “unchanged,” state media reported.
More likely, Putin is up to something else.
Details have emerged of a Russian peace offer reportedly made to US presidential envoy, Steve Witkoff, before the Alaska summit was hastily arranged. In essence, the proposals involve Kyiv surrendering territory in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, in exchange for a ceasefire, an idea the Ukrainian leadership has firmly ruled out.
“I am not going to surrender my country because I have no right to do so,” said Zelensky ahead of the summit, which he was not invited to. “If we leave Donbas today, our fortifications, our terrain, the heights we control, we will clearly open a bridgehead for the preparation of a Russian offensive.”
But Trump, who is expected to discuss the idea with Putin in Alaska, appears to like the sound of a land-for-peace deal, even one so unpalatable to Ukraine and its European partners.
That clear difference of opinion represents an opportunity for Putin to portray the Ukrainians and the Europeans – not Russia – as the real obstacle to peace, potentially undermining Trump’s already shaky support for the Ukrainian war effort. Trump has lost patience with Zelensky before, the Kremlin will have noted, and may do so again. If he were to cut off the remaining US military aid and intelligence sharing with Kyiv, Ukraine would struggle to continue its fight even with bolstered European support.
Ahead of the summit, the White House appeared to downplay expectations of a peace deal, characterizing the high-stakes meeting as a “listening exercise.”
That may suit Putin just fine.
It was, after all, the Kremlin who solicited the summit, according to the White House – possibly as a way of heading off a threat of US tariffs and secondary sanctions that Trump said would kick in last week. Keeping Trump talking may be an effective way of pushing back that deadline indefinitely.
More broadly, Putin sees a unique opportunity with Trump to fundamentally reset relations with Washington, and separate Russian ties with the US from the fate of Ukraine, a scenario that would also divide the Western allies.
For months, Kremlin officials have been talking up possibilities for economic, technological and space cooperation with the US, as well as lucrative deals on infrastructure and energy in the Arctic and elsewhere.
The fact the Kremlin’s top economic envoy, Kirill Dmitriev – a key interlocutor with the Trump administration – is part of the Russian delegation to Alaska suggests that more talk of US-Russian deal-making will be on the agenda.
And, if Putin gets his way in this summit, the “Ukraine question” may find itself relegated to just one of many talking points between the powerful leaders of two great powers – and not even the most pressing one.
https://edition.cnn.com/2025/08/14/europe/what-putin-wants-from-trump-alaska-analysis-intl
New Delhi: US President Donald Trump’s crackdown on Russian oil exports has come as a major blow to Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd. (RIL), which was a major importer of the cheap crude for processing at its giant oil refinery in Jamnagar on the Gujarat coast.
The setback is also reflected in the decline in prices of Reliance shares in recent days after Trump stepped up his rhetoric against the purchase of Russian oil by India.
In the last 30 days, the blue-chip stock fell nearly 7 per cent. At 2.38 p.m. on Tuesday, the scrip was trading at Rs 1,380, down 0.40 per cent. The RIL share price has crashed around 11 per cent from its 52-week high of Rs 1,551.
According to a report in the Financial Times, Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance was one of the biggest gainers of Russian crude purchases. The report cites Amrita Sen, director of research at data and analysis consultancy Energy Aspects, as saying that private Indian refiners like Reliance had gained even more than government-owned competitors, such as Indian Oil and Bharat Petroleum, because they exported more of their oil products. Sen pegs the gains of Reliance Industries through the purchase of cheap Russian oil at around $6 billion.
The US previously did not object to oil imports from Russia, as long as they were priced below the $60-a-barrel price cap fixed by the G7 countries to limit Russia’s earnings. These purchases also helped to keep more crude flowing into the market and prices from spinning out of control.
Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri has pointed out that India’s purchases of Russian crude oil have helped to bring down global energy prices to stable levels.
In an interview with a foreign news channel, Puri said: “Russia is one of the largest crude producers with over 9 million barrels/day. Imagine the chaos if this oil, amounting to about 10 per cent of the global oil supply of around 97 million, vanished from the market. It would have forced the world to reduce its consumption, and since the consumers would be chasing reduced supplies, the prices would’ve spiralled to over $120-130.”
“India has been a net positive contributor to global energy price stability, while at the same time we successfully navigated the trilemma of energy availability, affordability and sustainability,” he said.
India’s stand has been that Russian oil was never under global sanctions. “Sensible decision makers around the world were aware of the realities of global oil supply chains and how India was only helping the global markets by buying discounted oil under a price cap from wherever we could,” the minister said.
IANS
Colombia's state oil company Ecopetrol, has reported a 46% decrease in net profit for the second quarter (Q2) due to declining global oil prices and slight production decreases.
The company's net profit fell to approximately $450m (1.81trn pesos), down from the previous year's equivalent of $840m, with total sales also decreasing by 9% to around $7.4bn, reported Reuters.
Ecopetrol's CEO, Ricardo Roa, used a a press conference to highlight several operational challenges.
“We have had blockades, attacks and thefts that have prevented us from operating, and we have also seen a significant drop in volumes carried by third parties through our transportation assets,” Roa was quoted as saying.
These disruptions, along with new taxes and inflation, have compounded the impact of the oil price decline on the company's financial performance.
The company's total production saw a marginal year-on-year decline of 0.5%, averaging 755,500 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd).
Furthermore, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by 21% to around $2.78bn.
Despite the downturn, Ecopetrol has maintained substantial investments, with around $2.58bn allocated to exploration and production projects within Colombia and in international ventures in Brazil and the US.
As of the end of June, the company had completed drilling six out of the ten exploratory wells planned for the year.
The oil sector globally has been navigating through price volatility, partly due to OPEC+ increasing production, which contributed to an 11% decrease in Brent crude prices over the quarter.
Brent crude prices averaged $67 per barrel (bbl) in Q2, a drop from $75/bbl in the previous three months and $85/bbl in the same period last year.
In contrast to Ecopetrol's performance, Mexico's Pemex and Brazil's Petrobras managed to post profits despite the challenging market conditions.
Meanwhile, Ecopetrol has announced plans to continue with natural gas drilling in the Colombian Caribbean, aiming to cater to growing domestic demand and capitalise on its reserve potential, despite Shell's recent exit from three offshore blocks.
"Colombia’s Ecopetrol sees significant profit drop in Q2 2025" was originally created and published by Offshore Technology, a GlobalData owned brand.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/colombia-ecopetrol-sees-significant-profit-150531659.html
Russia reduced rail exports of liquefied gas to foreign markets in July. According to estimates, 261,000 tons of the resource were delivered last month, which is 5% less than in June.
This is evidenced by data from the A-95 Consulting Group, reports the industry publication enkorr.ua.
The reason for the decrease was scheduled maintenance work at the Lukoil-PNOS and Zapsibneftekhim plants, as well as a seasonal increase in domestic demand. In June-July, a number of enterprises traditionally carry out maintenance, which affects production volumes.
Tunisia became the largest importer of Russian liquefied gas in July, with 68,000 tons shipped. Supplies to China increased significantly, by 44% to 61,000 tons, the highest figure since the beginning of the year.
After the introduction of the embargo by the European Union, China became one of the main sales destinations for the Russian resource.
At the same time, exports to Central Asian countries decreased by 8% and amounted to 92 thousand tons. The largest volumes among regional consumers were recorded in Afghanistan (44 thousand tons) and Uzbekistan (27 thousand tons).
Supplies to Belarus and Poland also decreased significantly — almost halved, to 17 thousand tons.
Recall that inflation in Russia in the first week of July reached 0.79%, which was a record weekly increase since the spring of 2022 – that’s when prices skyrocketed amid panic about the economic crisis and the devaluation of the ruble. During periods of active inflation acceleration at the end of last year and the beginning of this year, weekly growth did not exceed 0.5%.
As reported, Russia has sent the first shipment of oil to Vietnam.Russia has begun looking for new energy buyers after India refused to buy its resources.
https://prm.ua/en/russia-reduced-gas-supplies-due-to-technical-shutdowns-of-plants/
Rumors of Shale’s Peak Were Premature
By Irina Slav - Aug 13, 2025, 7:00 PM CDT
During earnings season for the first quarter of the year, the message of the U.S. energy industry to the world was “Peak shale is here.” Now, three months later, the message has changed. Now, shale drillers are signaling there is still space to grow, so those expecting a decline after the peak will have to wait a bit longer.
“We believe we are at a tipping point for U.S. oil production at current commodity prices,” said Travis Stice, chief executive of Diamondback Energy back in May in a letter to shareholders. “The amount of capital required to get back to 13 million barrels a day or 6 million barrels a day in the Permian might be an untenable lift for the business model that we put in place,” Stice elaborated.
Now, the new chief executive of Diamondback is signaling this may not be the case. In comments on the company’s performance, Kaes Van’t Hof said that Diamondback was “pushing the limits of efficiency”, drilling new wells faster and cheaper, Bloomberg’s Javier Blas reported in his latest column, arguing rumors of shale’s peak were greatly exaggerated.
Indeed, earlier in the year, the Energy Information Administration reported estimates that total U.S. oil production would decline from 13.5 million barrels daily in the first half of 2025 to 13.3 million barrels daily by the end of next year. Drilling activity was slowing down faster than expected, the EIA said, citing rig count data. Prices were weighing on drillers, prompting revisions of new well drilling plans.
Yet just last month, the EIA had to revise its own forecast—because real-world data about oil production for May showed that shale drillers had kept expanding their production despite weaker international oil prices and despite a lower rig count. Granted, the growth was not bombastic, at 0.2% from the previous month, but on an annual basis, U.S. oil production gained 2.2% in May.
That, however, may not last very long. It normally takes several months before shale drillers respond to price weakness by curbing activity, and this year is no exception. Unless, that is, the demand outlook changes.
For much of this year, like last year, oil market commentary has focused on predictions of oversupply with a few sharp price swings following geopolitical events, suggesting that oversupply may be in jeopardy. Then there have been signs that there is no oversupply. The oil market is relatively balanced, and the chances of that balance tipping into the shortage direction are not insignificant, as some analysts noted after Trump’s latest tariff threat to India for its buying of Russian crude.
A slowdown in the energy transition is not helping reinforce the bearish sentiment. In fact, the transition has slowed so much that Wood Mackenzie has warned the world may find itself in urgent need of additional oil barrels. From 2035 onwards, the energy consultancy said recently, global oil demand might require an additional 5% more oil annually than previously estimated, due to the slower-than-planned transition. By 2050, we would need an extra 100 billion barrels of both oil and gas to balance supply with demand.
There is much talk about accelerating the transition, but the actual pace of switching oil and gas for wind and solar remains slow—which means there is a significant chance that the slowdown in U.S. shale is reversible as well. The moment prices tick up and stay up long enough, drillers will get their appetite for drilling back.
This is not to say there are no challenges that will be tricky to overcome. For starters, some in the oilfield services industry are warning that they have reached the limit for efficiency gains. “We’ve tripled oil production in the last 15 years, and we have doubled natural gas production.” But “there’s not a lot of gas left in the tank,” the chief executive of Quantum Energy Partners, Wil VanLoh, told Bloomberg back in September. “The US shale revolution has run its course.”
The limit of efficiency gains means there is no more space to lower costs by adding efficiency to drilling, which would make drillers more sensitive to prices. In other bad news for shale oil production growth, the Texas Railroad Commission has warned the industry that the amount of fracking fluid they were using was creating problems with ground pressure. For this reason, the commission earlier this year said it would restrict the number of new wastewater disposal licenses it issues to drillers.
Indeed, part of the efficiency gains the shale industry has developed over the past decade or so includes a significant increase in the amount of fracking fluid used. Per Enverus, it has gone up seven times over 15 years. And now it has to be moderated to avoid bigger problems.
All this limits the growth potential for shale deposits, for sure. But it does not cancel it altogether. Indeed, peak shale may get delayed yet.
By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com
Centrica Plc and Energy Capital Partners agreed to jointly purchase the UK’s Grain LNG terminal from National Grid Plc, in a £1.5 billion ($2 billion) deal that underlines the British utility’s long-term investment strategy.
(Bloomberg) — Centrica Plc and Energy Capital Partners agreed to jointly purchase the UK’s Grain LNG terminal from National Grid Plc, in a £1.5 billion ($2 billion) deal that underlines the British utility’s long-term investment strategy.
Shares of Centrica rose as much as 2.8% in London trading, after the owner of British Gas said it will invest £200 million for a 50% equity stake in the facility. Infrastructure investment firm ECP will own the other half of Grain terminal, following a transaction that involves £1.1 billion of project finance debt.
The investment, alongside Centrica’s participation in the country’s Sizewell C nuclear power plant, was welcomed by analysts for bolstering earnings and providing clarity on the firm’s strategy. The company — under investor pressure to set out its future spending plans after pursuing share buybacks — emerged as the leading contender after Hong-Kong investor CK Infrastructure Holdings Ltd. dropped out of the bidding recently.
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“We see this transaction as earnings accretive and see long term benefit for Centrica to own a portfolio of UK strategic gas assets,” Citigroup Inc. analyst Jenny Ping wrote in a note.
The Grain terminal is one of Europe’s biggest gas import facilities and an important gateway for supplies as the region increasingly depends on global seaborne flows. The terminal accounts for about 20% of UK’s LNG capacity.
Companies across Europe are vying with those in Asia to seal agreements to import LNG, especially from the US, after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine undermined the region’s energy security.
Selling the Grain LNG asset will help National Grid fund its massive investment program to decarbonize the UK power grid. The firm plans to spend more than £30 billion over the next five years on expansions and upgrades as the economy electrifies and more renewables enter the network.
(Updates with context from third paragraph)
A newly formed independent taskforce is calling for radical “once-in-a-generation” reform to break down regulatory barriers stalling the UK’s nuclear projects, with a focus on reducing costs and accelerating construction.
In its first report, published today (11 August), the Nuclear Regulatory Taskforce warns that complex, outdated regulations are hindering vital infrastructure, including small modular reactors and Sizewell C.
Commissioned by the UK government through the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero and established in April, the taskforce’s report urges a radical overhaul of nuclear regulation, emphasising the need to simplify processes, reduce bureaucracy, and ensure safety measures are proportionate.
Following a call for evidence that ended in May, it highlights the need for innovation and support for new nuclear technologies while aligning UK regulations with international standards.
This reform is seen as crucial to unlocking growth, creating thousands of jobs, and ensuring energy security – key elements of the government’s plan to make the UK a “clean energy superpower”.
Taskforce lead, John Fingleton, former CEO of the Office of Fair Trading, said that reforms were needed to deliver faster, cheaper, and more reliable nuclear energy.
He said: “Nuclear energy is safe and reliable and can contribute to net zero goals. It is also vital to the UK’s strategic deterrent.
“However, over recent decades, nuclear regulation has become more complex and costly without always delivering commensurate safety and environmental benefits.
“Our interim report identifies our main concerns with the current system which we think is not fit for purpose.
“With a view to recommending a once-in-a-generation reset, we now invite views from interested parties on what solutions will better enable the UK to achieve the huge benefits nuclear power offers.”
The taskforce’s findings come amid the UK government’s £30 billion commitment to a nuclear-powered future, including £14.2 billion funding for Sizewell C and £2.5 billion for its small modular reactor programme.
Further comments on the report are invited until 8 September, with the final recommendations set for release in autumn.
Grains
Posted 10:35 -- December corn is up 1 cent per bushel, November soybeans are up 4 1/2 cents, September KC wheat is down 2 1/4 cents, September Chicago wheat is up 3/4 cent and MIAX December Minneapolis wheat is up 0.0075 cents. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 352.39 points. The U.S. Dollar Index is down 0.380 and September crude oil is down $0.68 per barrel. December gold is up $8.90 per ounce. Soybean market still higher after the USDA report yesterday, while corn and wheat are still digesting the report. The corn market can't wrap its head around the record yield put out by USDA Tuesday, even though export demand remains strong.
Posted 08:34 -- December corn is up 1 1/2 cents per bushel, November soybeans are up 9 1/2 cents, September KC wheat is down 2 1/4 cents, September Chicago wheat is down 1/2 cent and MIAX December Minneapolis wheat is up 0.0225 cents. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 205.59 points. The U.S. Dollar Index is down 0.280 and September crude oil is down $0.14 per barrel. December gold is up $7.50 per ounce. The soy complex is firmer, corn is bouncing and wheat is mixed in quiet trade. November soybeans are on a 60-cent rally in the past three days, partly fueled by the lower production and ending stocks along with lower acres in Tuesday's report. Corn will be hard-pressed to maintain strength following the bearish data Tuesday.
Livestock
OMAHA (DTN) -- October live cattle are down $0.38 at $228.65, September feeder cattle are down $2.08 at $344.175, October lean hogs are down $1.33 at $90.275, December corn is up 1/4 cent per bushel and December soybean meal is up $3.20. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 325.67 points and NASDAQ is down 0.91 points. Some light sales have been reported in Nebraska at $385, which is $4.00 higher than last week's weighted average. No other cash cattle business has developed, and it's likely trade could still mainly wait until Thursday or Friday to develop.
Posted 08:41 -- October live cattle are up $1.38 at $230.4, September feeder cattle are up $1.83 at $348.075, October lean hogs are down $0.35 at $91.25, pork cutout are down $4.39 at $114.7, September corn is up 1/4 cents per bushel and November soybeans are up 9 1/2 cents. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 212.27 points and NASDAQ is up 118.27 points. The cash cattle market is still quiet with no substantial trade having developed. Bids and asking prices remain illusive at this point too.
https://www.dtnpf.com/agriculture/web/ag/news/article/2025/08/13/periodic-updates-grains-livestock
HC Wainwright & Co. analyst Heiko F. Ihle has raised the price target for Franco-Nevada (FNV) to $200.00, maintaining a "Buy" rating. This is a 2.56% increase in the price target, following positive analyst sentiment and favorable ratings from other firms. Franco-Nevada owns a diversified portfolio of precious metals and royalty streams, generating revenue from gold, silver, and platinum. Its short-term performance is linked to commodity prices and production from its portfolio, while long-term performance is affected by exploration and development capital.
HC Wainwright & Co. analyst Heiko F. Ihle has raised the price target for Franco-Nevada Corp (FNV) to $200.00, maintaining a "Buy" rating. This represents a 2.56% increase from the previous target, reflecting positive analyst sentiment and favorable ratings from other firms.
Franco-Nevada, a Toronto-based company, owns a diversified portfolio of precious metals and royalty streams, generating revenue from gold, silver, and platinum. The company's short-term performance is closely linked to commodity prices and production from its portfolio, while long-term performance is influenced by exploration and development capital.
Scotiabank recently raised its price target for Franco-Nevada to $184.00, citing the company's work with First Quantum and the Government of Panama on the potential restart of the Cobre Panama mine. The bank also noted Franco-Nevada's focus on achieving its 2025 guidance and executing on transaction opportunities [1].
Franco-Nevada Corp is expected to report earnings of $1.12 per share for the period ending June 30, 2025, according to analyst estimates. The company is also expected to show a rise in quarterly revenue, with a 43.7% increase to $373.715 million from $260.1 million a year ago [2].
The company's recent financial performance has been mixed. In Q2 2025, Franco-Nevada reported earnings per share (EPS) of $1.28, which exceeded analyst expectations. However, revenue for the quarter was slightly below forecasts, coming in at $369.4 million against the anticipated $375.91 million. Despite the earnings beat, the revenue shortfall was notable.
Franco-Nevada Corp has approximately $1.3 billion in available total liquidity, net of 12-month commitments, for transaction opportunities [1].
References:
[1] https://www.investing.com/news/analyst-ratings/franco-nevada-stock-price-target-raised-to-184-from-182-at-scotiabank-93CH-4184923
[2] https://www.tradingview.com/news/reuters.com,2025:newsml_L8N3U02S1:0-franco-nevada-corp-expected-to-post-earnings-of-1-12-a-share-earnings-preview/
https://www.ainvest.com/news/franco-nevada-boost-hc-wainwright-price-target-raised-200-2508/
New insider activity at Southern Copper (SCCO) has taken place on August 12, 2025.
Director Luis Miguel Palomino Bonilla has recently sold 414 shares of Southern Copper stock, totaling a transaction value of $41,400.
Recent Updates on SCCO stock
In the past 24 hours, Southern Copper Corporation (SCCO) has experienced notable developments following its Q2 earnings report. The company reported a slight decline in net sales due to reduced copper sales volumes and fluctuating metal prices, yet managed a 2.4% increase in net income thanks to lower operating costs and higher interest income. Analysts have reacted to these results with mixed sentiments. BofA upgraded Southern Copper to Neutral from Underperform, citing diminished concerns over capital allocation, execution risks, and regulatory uncertainties in Mexico, alongside strengthened copper fundamentals. Conversely, Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock to Underweight from Equal Weight, pointing to less compelling risk/reward prospects for copper equities after recent outperformance, driven by macroeconomic and growth concerns. These divergent views reflect the complex market conditions and strategic challenges facing Southern Copper.
Spark’s Take on SCCO Stock
According to Spark, TipRanks’ AI Analyst, SCCO is a Outperform.
Southern Copper’s overall stock score is driven by strong financial performance and fair valuation. The company’s profitability and cash flow generation are significant strengths, while technical indicators suggest mixed short-term momentum. The absence of earnings call data limits insights into recent company guidance and sentiment.
More about Southern Copper
YTD Price Performance: 8.07%
Average Trading Volume: 1,487,479
Technical Sentiment Signal: Buy
Current Market Cap: $77.29B
(Reuters) -Hudbay Minerals said on Wednesday Mitsubishi Corp will buy a 30% stake in its Copper World project in Arizona for $600 million, boosting financing and strategic backing for the U.S. copper mine.
The deal is expected to close later this year, or early next year.
WHY IT'S IMPORTANT
Last month, U.S. President Donald Trump imposed a 50% tariff on copper pipes, wiring and other semi-finished products, but exempted refined copper cathodes and raw materials such as ores.
Hudbay said its "Made in America" copper production will strengthen the domestic supply chain.
CONTEXT
Copper World, which is being constructed in Pima County, Arizona, comprises four open-pit copper mines in the first phase, with more planned for later.
The mine is expected to produce 85,000 tonnes of copper per year over an initial 20-year lifetime.
MARKET REACTION
U.S.-listed shares Hudbay rose nearly 17% in the premarket trading.
Analyst Shane Nagle of National Bank Financial said the $600 million Mitsubishi joint venture is a “significantly accretive” deal that underscores the scarcity of shovel-ready copper projects globally and the importance of investing in the U.S. critical minerals supply chain.
BY NUMBERS
Mitsubishi will pay $420 million initially upon the closing and remaining $180 million will be paid within 18 months after the deal is complete.
Copper World will facilitate a $1.5 billion investment into the U.S. critical minerals supply chain, the company said.
(Reporting by Sumit Saha in Bengaluru; Editing by Sahal Muhammed)
https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/hudbay-minerals-sell-30-stake-121258447.html
In its mid-year performance report, Merafe stated that the global demand for ferrochrome continues to increase, but South Africa is losing its once leading position.
August 14, 2025 News:
According to *Mining Weekly*, Zanele Matlala, CEO of Merafe Resources, stated at the company's interim results presentation: "Global stainless steel production has increased, driving up demand for ferrochrome. However, due to unfavorable market conditions, South African ferrochrome production has declined significantly, especially as ferrochrome prices are below production costs."
Ferrochrome commands a five-fold multiplier over the raw price of chrome ore, yet South Africa is increasingly shifting towards exporting chrome ore, which has a much lower value. Due to smelter shutdowns, South African ferrochrome production has fallen by 27%, and despite ferrochrome prices rebounding by approximately 10% from their lows in Q1 2025, it is still not enough to resume ferrochrome smelting. In contrast, South Africa's chrome ore exports are expected to rise in the future.
"Given the structural changes in the business, chrome ore production and costs will be included in future updates," Matlala said. Due to the decline in chrome ore prices and reduced costs of reducing agents, the production cost per mt of ferrochrome has decreased by 5% since December 2024. To drive the redevelopment of ferrochrome, engagement with stakeholders continues. "The government has expressed support for the industry. However, the implementation dates for the proposed measures have not yet been determined,"
Matlala said. "The government's proposed interventions include adjusting electricity prices, including chrome ore in export controls, imposing an export tax on chrome ore, and expanding special economic zones. These are not quick fixes," he added, noting that the workforce at Glencore-Merafe's idle Boshoek and Wonderkop smelters remains.
"With the suspension of the smelters, there will be increased focus on chrome ore mining operations, and our reporting is being revised to reflect this," Matlala informed.
Merafe FD Ditabe Chocho reported that despite a significant decline in sales in H1, ferrochrome still accounted for 51% of total revenue. However, ferrochrome revenue for the half-year declined by 60%, and chrome ore revenue fell by 17%.
&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Japan launches anti-dumping probe into Chinese, South Korean steel imports")
Japan has opened a formal anti-dumping investigation into steel imports from China and South Korea, in a move aimed at protecting its domestic producers from a wave of cheap foreign products. The probe will examine imports of hot-dipped galvanised coil, sheet and strip, according to a joint statement from the trade and finance ministries on Wednesday, as reported by Bloomberg. The investigation is set to run for up to a year. It follows an application filed in April by four major Japanese steelmakers, including Nippon Steel Corp. and Kobe Steel Ltd., which argued that the influx of low-priced imports was harming the local industry. Officials confirmed that Chinese and South Korean suppliers will have an opportunity to submit evidence before any decision on duties is made.
China’s steel export boom pressures global prices
China, the world’s largest steel producer, has seen its exports surge in 2025 as domestic demand falters. A prolonged slowdown in the property sector — traditionally a key driver of steel consumption has left producers with large surpluses, prompting them to flood overseas markets with low-cost steel.
According to Bloomberg, this export wave has weighed heavily on global steel prices and intensified competition, hitting producers in Japan, South Korea, and other key manufacturing hubs. Analysts say Japan’s move reflects a broader global trend, as governments look to shield their industries from the impact of aggressive export strategies by Chinese mills.
Trade tensions and US tariffs complicate market dynamics
The Japanese steel industry is already contending with shifting trade flows and heightened competition. Tariffs imposed by the US government under President Donald Trump have reshaped global steel supply chains, adding a further layer of complexity for Japanese producers trying to maintain competitiveness.
These trade measures have forced exporters to seek new markets and adjust pricing strategies, creating additional volatility in the steel trade. In this context, Japan’s anti-dumping action is seen as a defensive measure to maintain stability in its domestic market.
Not the first recent action by Japan
This is Japan’s second anti-dumping investigation in as many months. In July, Tokyo began a probe into Chinese and Taiwanese nickel-added cold-rolled stainless-steel coil, sheet and strip. Both actions signal a stronger stance from the Japanese government in countering what it sees as unfair trade practices.
As per Bloomberg, if the current probe concludes that dumping has occurred, Japan could impose new import duties on Chinese and South Korean steel products. Such a move would join a growing list of global trade restrictions reshaping the steel market in 2025.
(With inputs from the agencies)
