Japan’s 10-year government bond yield climbed above 1.77% on Wednesday, marking a fresh 17-year high ahead of a crucial debt auction that could indicate investor demand amid rising fiscal concerns.
The Ministry of Finance plans to auction around 800 billion yen in 20-year JGBs.
On Tuesday, the government proposed a supplementary budget exceeding 25 trillion yen to fund Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s stimulus plan, far above last year’s 13.9 trillion yen extra budget, stoking debt worries.
Meanwhile, Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda told the prime minister that the central bank is gradually raising rates to steer inflation toward its 2% target while supporting sustainable growth.
Afterward, Ueda told reporters the prime minister made no specific request on monetary policy.
On the data front, machinery orders in Japan rose more than expected in September, signaling robust capital spending.
New indexes provide independent transparency to support offtake agreements
LONDON, Nov. 19, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Global energy and commodity price reporting agency Argus has launched the world's first calculated prices for e-SAF (electrolytic sustainable aviation fuel). The modelled production costs will support offtake agreement negotiations and provide new transparency to help the energy industry address environmental requirements.
Governments recognise that biofuel-based SAF alone cannot decarbonise aviation, because renewable feedstocks, mostly used cooking oil, are a finite resource. As a result, the industry will need to use e-SAF, which is produced directly from hydrogen and carbon dioxide molecules.
Mandates for use of e-SAF in aviation take effect from 2028 in the UK and from 2030 in the EU, with significant penalties for non-compliance. Yet the industry is nowhere near ready. Of the 70 proposed e-SAF plants in the UK and EU tracked by Argus, no commercial-scale plant has yet reached a final investment decision (FID). Plants take three to four years to build, so FIDs must be taken within the next year if targets are to be met.
E-SAF as a pioneering technology is more expensive than bio-SAF and conventional jet fuel. The new Argus calculated costs for e-SAF production in November 2025 show it is currently 13 times the cost of conventional jet fuel and 3.5 times the cost of bio-SAF (produced using the HEFA SPK pathway) in northwest Europe.
Argus Media chairman and chief executive Adrian Binks said: "Long-term e-SAF offtake agreements are essential to the financing of production facilities. But buyers are wary of committing tens of millions of dollars in such agreements, and this has created a disconnect between supply obligations and demand, which in turn has stalled investment. Our new modelled costs will provide important independent transparency upon which participants across the e-SAF value chain can rely to inform their long-term decision making."
The new weekly indexes compute the production cost of e-SAF in the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) region of northwest Europe on a €/t and $/t basis, and are published both inclusive and exclusive of capital expenditure.
These new calculated prices expand Argus' SAF offering, building on well-established market references in northwest Europe, Asia-Pacific and the US for hydrotreated esters and fatty acids synthesised paraffinic kerosene (HEFA-SPK) bio-SAF. The calculation methodology draws on Argus' pricing and consultancy expertise across biofuels, natural gas and hydrogen.
NEW YORK/LONDON: U.S. oil major Chevron is studying options to buy global assets of sanctioned Russian oil firm Lukoil, five sources familiar with the process told Reuters.
The U.S. Treasury gave clearance last week to potential buyers to talk to Lukoil about foreign assets. Chevron would join Carlyle and other firms in the race for the Lukoil portfolio worth at least $20 billion.
The United States last month imposed sanctions on Russia’s two biggest oil companies, Lukoil and Rosneft, as part of efforts by President Donald Trump’s administration to force Moscow into peace talks with Ukraine.
Chevron is exploring options to buy assets of Lukoil where the companies overlap rather than the entire portfolio, the five sources said. They asked not to be named as they are not allowed to speak to media. Chevron’s interest has not been previously reported.
Chevron said that it complies with laws and regulations applicable to its business and does not comment on commercial matters.
Lukoil extracts about 2% of global oil output at home and abroad, and has said it is seeking buyers for its international assets, which produce 0.5% of global oil and are estimated to be worth about $22 billion, based on 2024 filings.
Other Suitors
U.S. private equity giant Carlyle is among those exploring options to buy Lukoil’s foreign assets, sources told Reuters last week.
Lukoil has three refineries in Europe, stakes in oilfields in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Iraq, Mexico, Ghana, Egypt and Nigeria, and hundreds of retail fuel stations around the world, including in the United States.
Lukoil has 13.5% in the Karachaganak field and 5% in the Tengiz field in Kazakhstan, which also has Chevron, Exxon Mobil, Eni and Shell among their shareholders.
The fields are the main source of crude for the CPC pipeline carrying more than 1.6 million barrels per day of crude, or 1.5% of global oil demand, to global markets via Russia.
Lukoil also has a stake in the Nigerian offshore license OML-140, which Chevron operates.
Finland-based petrol station chain Teboil, which is fully owned by Lukoil, said on Monday it expects its ownership to change as part of the Russian major’s efforts to sell international assets.
Lukoil also operates the West Qurna 2 project in Iraq, where Exxon had long been the operator of the neighboring West Qurna 1 project before exiting last year.
Iraq’s government is discussing seeking a six-month sanctions waiver from the U.S. Treasury for Lukoil to have more time to sell its stake in West Qurna 2, three Iraqi energy officials told Reuters on Monday. Iraq has ruled out the state buying Lukoil’s stake in the project.
US sanctions on Russian oil producers Rosneft and Lukoil, along with the European Union’s ban on refined products derived from Russian crude, are unlikely to materially affect the margins or credit profiles of India’s state-owned oil marketing companies, Fitch Ratings said, according to PTI. However, the agency said the eventual impact would depend on the duration and enforcement of the sanctions. Russian crude accounted for around one-third of India’s imports between January and August 2025, and discounts have contributed meaningfully to OMC profitability.
Fitch expects Indian refiners to comply with the sanctions, although some may continue sourcing unsanctioned grades. India sharply increased Russian crude intake after the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, with discounted volumes lifting Russia’s share in India’s crude basket from under 1 per cent to nearly 40 per cent within months. Fitch said sanctions-related disruptions could suppress global demand for products linked to affected crude, potentially widening refined product spreads and helping refiners offset the loss of discounted Russian barrels. Those that continue processing unsanctioned Russian crude may benefit from deeper discounts.
The agency noted that global spare crude capacity should limit upward pressure on oil prices. It forecasts Brent at $70 in 2025 and $5 in 2026.Private refiners with exposure to EU markets may face greater compliance challenges, as crude origin becomes harder to trace when grades are blended. Such companies may adjust crude slates, redirect exports or invest in improved traceability systems.Indian OMCs posted EBITDA broadly in line with or slightly above expectations in the first half of FY26, supported by softer crude and robust gasoil spreads. Gross refining margins averaged $–7 per barrel, compared with $4.5–7 per barrel in FY25.Fitch expects GRMs to remain near mid-cycle levels of around $ per barrel in FY27, aided by firm domestic fuel demand and high utilisation rates.A government-approved ₹30,000 crore support package for Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum, and Hindustan Petroleum in the second quarter of FY26 will help offset under-recoveries on subsidised LPG and strengthen liquidity, the agency said.Fitch added that the Issuer Default Ratings of all three OMCs remain supported by strong state linkages and a high likelihood of sovereign backing if required, PTI reported.
The American Petroleum Institute (API) has reported an increase in its weekly crude stock, reflecting a possible downturn in US petroleum demand. The latest data shows that the crude inventory level has risen to 4.4 million barrels.
This significant increase has exceeded market predictions, suggesting a bearish outlook for crude prices. Analysts had previously anticipated a more modest increase, given the previous week's reported inventory of 1.3 million barrels.
The 4.4 million barrels reported by the API is more than three times the previous figure. This sharp increase implies weaker demand for crude oil, gasoline, and distillates. The inventory data serves as a key indicator of the health of the US petroleum market, providing insights into both supply and demand dynamics.
The API's weekly crude stock data is closely monitored by market participants as it provides an early indication of the Energy Information Administration (EIA) data. The EIA report, which is more comprehensive and widely followed, is due to be released later this week.
The unexpected increase in crude inventories could potentially exert downward pressure on crude prices. If the trend continues, it could indicate a sustained period of weaker demand. Conversely, a decrease in inventories that exceeds market expectations could signal a bullish trend for crude prices, reflecting stronger demand.
In the short term, the increase in crude stock is likely to impact the sentiment of traders and investors within the oil market. The extent of this impact will be determined by a range of factors, including global economic conditions, geopolitical tensions, and changes in production levels.
The API will continue to monitor and report on the levels of US crude oil, gasoline, and distillates stocks, providing crucial data to help market participants make informed decisions. As always, the oil market will be closely watching for any signs of change in the supply-demand balance.
By ZeroHedge - Nov 18, 2025, 12:00 PM CST
One year ago, Goldman's precious metal analyst Lina Thomas made the case that gold would rise to $3000 by the end of 2025 (it ended up rising more than $1000 higher) as a result of relentless central bank purchases in general, and thanks to China's ravenous appetite for gold in particular. The bank promptly got pushback on this thesis, with skeptics countering that it is unlikely that gold will manage to keep its ascent at the same time as the dollar rises to new record highs, one of the largest consensus Trump trades.
In response, Thomas also - correctly - pushed back, writing that she disagrees with the argument that "gold cannot rally to $3,000/toz by end-2025 in a world where the dollar stays stronger for longer", for four reasons:
And while it took less than a year for gold prices to surge far above the bank's (in retrospect) conservative forecast, there was one aspect of the prediction that was already playing out: as we showed at the time using an analysis of central bank and other institutional gold buying on the London OTC market, China was secretly buying up 10x more gold than it admits.
A few months later we repeated this observation: China continued to secretly buy 10x more gold (27 tonnes) than it reports (3 tonnes).
While that alone was sufficient to validate the bullish thesis, another key factor that also emerged was the aggressive ramp up of gold ETF purchases by retail investors, something we predicted over a year ago...
... and which Morgan Stanley confirmed over the weekend had been a "big support for gold this year."
But while ETF purchases come and go as price momentum ebbs and flows, in retrospect the biggest shocker was our revelation that - in keeping with tradition - China was secretly buying up most of the available gold in the open market (presumably in anticipation of some major event which has yet to be unveiled). Needless to say, there was tremendous pushback to this claim, with the "serious" strategists balking at the possibility that China would be allocating its precious reserves to a barbarous relic.
Not any more: fast-forwarding to one year later when over the weekend, the FT reported that "China’s actual gold purchases could be more than 10 times its official figures as it quietly tries to diversify away from the US dollar, highlighting the increasingly opaque sources of demand behind bullion’s record-breaking rally." Or precisely what we said last December.
The FT notes that publicly reported buying by China’s central bank has been so low this year - 1.9 tonnes purchased in August, 1.9 tonnes in July and 2.2 tonnes in June - that few in the market believe the official figures. Instead, echoing the same trade data analysis we did back in 2024 (and ever since), the newspaper points to work done by analysts at Société Générale who estimate that China’s total purchases could reach as much as 250 tonnes this year, or more than a third of total global central bank demand.
The scale of the country’s unreported purchases highlights the growing challenges facing traders trying to work out where prices go next in a market increasingly dominated by central bank purchases.
“China is buying gold as part of their de-dollarisation strategy,” said Jeff Currie, chief strategy officer of energy pathways at Carlyle, who says he does not try to guess how much gold the People’s Bank of China is buying.
“Unlike oil, where you can track it with satellites, with gold you can’t. There’s just no way to know where this stuff goes and who is buying it.”
And since official Chinese data is unreliable at best, or simply fake, traders had turned to alternative sources of data to gauge demand, such as orders for freshly cast 400oz bars with consecutive serial numbers, which are typically refined in Switzerland or South Africa, shipped via London and flown to China, for evidence of the country’s purchases. The same analysis we have been doing since 2022.
“This year, people are really not believing the official figures, especially about China,” said Bruce Ikemizu, director of the Japan Bullion Market Association, who believes China’s current gold reserves are nearly 5,000 tonnes, double the level it publicly reports.
Of course, China is not alone: ever since the US weaponized the dollar in response to the Ukraine war, Central banks have been buying up huge quantities of bullion fuelling a rally that has pushed the price above $4,300 per troy ounce.
This accumulating has been so relentless, that gold’s share of global reserves outside the US has climbed from 10% to 26% over the past decade, World Gold Council data shows, making it the second-largest reserve asset after the dollar. Yet fewer and fewer of these purchases are being reported to the IMF, which collects data voluntarily.
In the most recent quarter, only about one-third of official buying was publicly reported, down from about 90% four years ago, according to WGC estimates based on Metals Focus data.
Central banks may choose not to report their gold activity to avoid front-running the market or for political reasons. Some fear that publicly buying bullion, which is often a hedge against the dollar, could worsen relations with the Trump administration.
“It makes sense to just report the bare minimum, if need be, for fear of reprisal from the US administration,” said Nicky Shiels, analyst at Swiss refinery MKS Pamp. “Gold is seen as a pure USA hedge. In most emerging markets it is in central banks’ interest to not fully disclose purchases.”
At the same time, sellers are also keen not to move prices against themselves by announcing their intentions. Former UK chancellor Gordon Brown’s well-publicized statements in 1999 that the Bank of England would sell half its gold reserves helped push prices even lower, and the sale yielded just $275 per ounce on average, about one-fifteenth of today’s price.
Michael Haigh, an analyst at Société Générale, said this opacity made the gold market “unique and tricky” compared with commodities such as oil, where Opec plays a role in regulating production.
“What is different with gold is that the tonnage going in and out of central banks is so impactful. Without having clarity on that, it is a bit more of an issue.”
And while China is the world’s biggest producer and consumer of gold, it is also the least transparent, leaving analysts to run their own numbers based on import data, guesswork and tips.
Its official gold-buying program, which is managed by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, part of the People’s Bank of China, has officially bought just 25 tonnes this year. Reserve gold is typically stored either in Shanghai or in Beijing. And yet, applying the same proxy we used one year ago, namely looking at UK gold exports to China (as the PBOC favors large bars which are mainly traded in London), SocGen estimates that Safe will import about 250 tonnes this year, or 10x more. This number sure sounds familiar...
Another method is to calculate the gap between China’s net imports and domestic gold production, and the change in the amount held by commercial banks or purchased by retail consumers. Using this method, Plenum Research, a Beijing consultancy, calculates a “gap” attributable to official buying of 1,351 tonnes in 2023 and 1,382 tonnes in 2022, more than six times the public purchases China made in those years.
But while the actual numbers are unclear, one thing is certain: China will buy much more gold than it officially reports. Safe has one-year and five-year targets for its purchases of gold, and current official holdings remain far below target, according to a former Safe official. The purchases are made not only by Safe and its intermediaries, but also by China’s sovereign wealth fund CIC and the military, which are not mandated to disclose their holdings on a timely basis.
Complicating the picture is China’s status as the world’s largest gold miner, accounting for 10% of global production last year, which means that it also has the option of buying bullion domestically for its reserves. But in a geopolitical statement of force, as China expands its gold holdings, it is also courting developing nations to store it in the country. As BBG recently reported, Cambodia recently agreed to place newly purchased gold, paid for in renminbi, in the Shanghai Gold Exchange’s vault in Shenzhen.
In light of all these variables, many gold analysts will not even hazard a guess as to the true scale of purchases by the PBoC.
“It’s ultimately unknowable,” said Adrian Ash, research director of BullionVault, an online trading platform. “Any apparent route to figuring it out . . . misses the problem that it is only one part of the enigma wrapped in the riddle which is China’s bullion market.”
One thing is clear: it will keep rising.
In a note published earlier today Lina Thomas (and available to pro subs), the Goldman gold analyst who correctly calculated China's true purchases over a year ago, she writes that the bank's latest gold nowcast estimates that central bank purchased 64 tonnes for September vs. 21 tonnes in August, and central bank buying likely continued in November: "We continue to see elevated central bank gold accumulation as a multi-year trend, as central banks diversify their reserves to hedge geopolitical and financial risks. We maintain our assumption of average monthly central bank buying of 80 tonnes in 2025Q4-2026", Thomas wrote.
The gold price broke higher last week, jumping about $25 in a vertical move during last Monday’s Asia hours and rising nearly 6% before correcting on Friday to just under $4,100. The timing, size and speed of last Monday’s price increase are consistent with Asian [ZH: read Chinese] central bank buying, which often appears in London prices around Asian trading hours and thus sees an initial decrease in the Shanghai-London price premium but is then often followed by delayed momentum buying in retail China and then the West.
We continue to see elevated central bank gold accumulation as a multi-year trend as central banks diversify their reserves to hedge geopolitical and financial risks.
Our GS nowcast of central bank and institutional gold demand on the London OTC estimates September purchases at 64 tonnes (67 tonnes on a 12-month moving-average basis), up from 21 tonnes in August and consistent with the typical post-summer seasonal acceleration
Goldman estimates that September purchases were led by the Middle East - Qatar at 20 tonnes and Oman at 7 tonnes - and China at 15 tonnes, extending the trend of massively underreporting its actual purchases (the official number was roughly 10% of that estimate).
Goldman concludes that the pickup in central bank buying, together with the largest monthly gold Western ETF inflow (112 tonnes) since mid-2022, marks the first time in this cycle that strong post-2022 central bank demand and such a sizable increase in ETF holdings have occurred simultaneously, something we predicted back in 2024. Thomas believes that this combination, alongside likely additional off-ETF physical buying by ultra-high net worth individuals, as well as the ongoing buying spree by Tether which is increasingly diversifying into gold alongside T-bills, likely contributed to September’s 10% rally, the strongest monthly increase in gold prices since 2016.
Going forward, Goldman expects continued central bank buying, alongside private investor flows under Fed easing, to lift gold prices to $4,900 by end-2026, and predicted even more "significant upside" if the private investor diversification theme gains more traction.
Kenmare Resources (GB:KMR) just unveiled an update.
Kenmare Resources has provided an update on its Wet Concentrator Plant A (WCP A) upgrade project and 2025 production guidance. The company has installed new high-capacity dredges and a feed preparation module, achieving nameplate capacity intermittently. However, commissioning challenges have led to lower production rates, prompting a revised 2025 production guidance of 870,000 to 905,000 tonnes of ilmenite. Despite these challenges, Kenmare expects to meet shipment commitments through existing inventory and anticipates no impact on sales. The transition to the Nataka ore zone, crucial for long-term production, is on track, with the capital cost estimate unchanged at $341 million.
The most recent analyst rating on (GB:KMR) stock is a Hold with a £296.00 price target.
Spark’s Take on GB:KMR Stock
According to Spark, TipRanks’ AI Analyst, GB:KMR is a Neutral.
Kenmare Resources faces significant challenges, with declining financial performance and weak technical indicators. The high dividend yield offers some support, but the negative P/E ratio and bearish market trends are concerning. The lack of earnings call data and corporate events further limits positive factors.
More about Kenmare Resources
Kenmare Resources plc is one of the world’s largest producers of titanium minerals, operating the Moma Titanium Minerals Mine in Mozambique. The company, listed on the London Stock Exchange and Euronext Dublin, supplies raw materials used in everyday items such as paints, plastics, and ceramic tiles to customers in over 15 countries.
Average Trading Volume: 140,387
Technical Sentiment Signal: Sell
Current Market Cap: £254.2M
China Hongqiao Group Plans $1.5 Billion Share Sale
China Hongqiao Group, the country's largest private aluminium producer, aims to raise HK$11.68 billion (US$1.5 billion) from a share sale to fund projects and repay debt, capitalising on robust industry margins and a buoyant Hong Kong equity market, according to a filing reported by the South China Morning Post.
The company planned to sell up to 400 million existing shares for HK$29.20 each, representing a 9.6 per cent discount to its closing price on Monday, according to a filing to the Hong Kong stock exchange on Tuesday.
"In view of the current capital market conditions, the board considers the placing and the subscription represent a good opportunity for the company to raise further capital for the company, while at the same time broadening its shareholder and capital base," the filing said.
Its shares slumped 7.7 per cent to HK$29.80 in early trading, trimming its gain to 153.4 per cent this year.
The placed shares would account for about 4 per cent of China Hongqiao's enlarged share capital, according to the filing. The company added that the offer price marked a premium of nearly 2.2 per cent to the average closing price of around HK$28.58 per share over the past 30 trading days.
The fundraising comes amid rising margins for the metal, with aluminium trading near a three-year high thanks to solid demand and measured supply.
Source: IndexBox Market Intelligence Platform
https://www.indexbox.io/blog/china-hongqiao-group-plans-15-billion-share-sale/
Star Copper (CSE:STCU) is aiming to advance Canada’s next copper-gold porphyry discovery, after completing three step-out holes at the Star Main target in British Columbia, Canada.
The phase two drilling program expands the copper footprint to the north and west, while also sharpening vectors to the potassic core that underpins the Star Project’s larger scale potential.
Star Copper says these holes, coupled with ongoing work at the satellite targets, position the company to deliver a steady cadence of results, as well as define a data-driven 2026 program. The 2026 program will focus on step outs and deeper testing.
To date, 11 holes from the 2025 drilling program are pending assaying.
CEO Darryl Jones says the company has extended mineralisation into new panels, strengthened the link between potassic alteration and chalcopyrite at depth, as well as added corridors displaying veining density where it matters most.
“We are very excited by what we’re seeing for our exploration campaigns this year,” Jones says.
“The holes were sited within the Star Main target area to extend mineralisation north and west of recent collars and to tighten the geological framework linking near-surface copper oxide mineralisation with hypogene vein and dissemination-hosted chalcopyrite mineralisation in potassic-altered intrusives and associated vein networks.”
The Star target is an advancing copper-gold system with potential for extension both laterally and at depth. The project is located within the Golden Triangle, which is a loosely defined region that hosts gold, silver, and copper deposits in northwestern British Columbia.
Star Copper is a Canadian mineral explorer focused on advancing its portfolio of assets.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
https://mining.com.au/shooting-for-canadas-next-discovery-star-copper/
China's weak macro signals and the fading hope of the US Fed rate cut have resulted in aluminium price drop of 1.35 per cent, settling at USD 266.85.
In addition, supply concerns due to a 9 per cent month-on-month decline in China's October primary aluminium output, standing at 3.8 million tonnes, also contributed to the aluminium price fall. Downside also remained limited due to the Chinese smelters' focus on nudging government-imposed capacity limits, which is directly linked with the rising concerns over the compelled output for the coming months.
Moreover, with the slowest growth in industrial output by about 4.9 per cent, with the retail sales rising at 2.9 per cent, also posed pressure on demand, pulling down the aluminium price. While new home prices dropped by 0.5 per cent, new bank loans slumped sharply, indicating weak credit demand and the continuous stress upon the ongoing property market.
Tightened supply outlook also comes from Iceland's smelter outages, Century Aluminium curtailments, and Alcoa's refinery shutdown in Australia. Concurrently, in the rising premiums, the tightness of the physical market was also reflected, where the premiums of the European aluminium climbed to USD 328, nearly double the levels seen in June.
Nevertheless, the fund inflows into the London Metal Exchange (LME) aluminium have significantly risen, backed by the expectations of a tighter supply. A mixed outlook is seen by the banks, with Goldman Sachs revising its long-term forecast downward. Concurrently, ANZ widened its target outlook for the short-term, aiming for USD 2,900 per tonne whilst observing improved global manufacturing demand.
Aluminium is deemed to be under the long liquidation, where the open interest is USD 2,403, down by 4.94 per cent. The support is seen at USD 265.5 with expected further decline to USD 264. Resistance is recorded at USD 269.6 alongside a breakout, which may lift the price to USD 272.2.
https://www.alcircle.com/news/aluminium-fell-as-chinas-primary-output-rose-0-4-in-october-116247
The company's offers for the week of November 17-23 increased by $15/t
American steel company Nucor continues its cycle of hot-rolled coil (HRC) price increases, gradually raising weekly spot prices for consumers (CSP) for the fourth week in a row. For the week of November 17-23, CSP is $910 per short ton, which is $15 higher than the previous week. This is the most significant increase in the last month, as previous weekly adjustments were only $5-10/t.
Spot order lead times remain stable at 3-5 weeks, indicating controlled production capacity utilization and balanced demand in the domestic market. The spot weekly price for Nucor’s West Coast subsidiary, California Steel Industries (CSI), also rose by $10/t to $960/t.
The current price growth demonstrates an acceleration in the price trend and may indicate manufacturers’ desire to maintain positive momentum before the end of the year. The market is responding to a combination of factors, including seasonal supply constraints, stable demand from end users, and manufacturers’ desire to maintain margins amid fluctuating costs.
According to the latest Kallanish estimate as of November 12, domestic prices for US HRC traded in the range of $830-865/t. Thus, the published Nucor level significantly exceeds the average market quotes, forming an additional price benchmark for other producers and traders. Further developments are expected to depend on the pace of demand recovery and the market’s reaction to a series of increases that have been ongoing for over a month.
In late September and October, the global hot-rolled coil market showed opposite trends in the main regions.
European prices rose under the influence of the expected strengthening of trade protection. The US saw prolonged stability amid weak demand, while China again lowered its prices due to excess inventories and uncertainty about the recovery of the industry.
https://gmk.center/en/news/nucor-raises-prices-for-hot-rolled-steel-for-the-fourth-week-in-a-row/
Ferrexpo, the London-listed iron ore producer with operations in Ukraine, is moving forward with its “Green Mine” initiative, a multi-phase program designed to electrify and automate the company’s mining operations in Ukraine.
As the company reported in its recent Responsible Business Report, this step could significantly cut both carbon emissions and long-term production costs.
The project, formalised in 2023, represents one of the company’s most ambitious environmental investment project to date. Together with MEC Mining, a leading global technical research and consulting firm, Ferrexpo has conducted comprehensive study based on a ten-year plan to identify opportunities for the electrification of its mining operations.
The first phase of the study included identification of the most effective electrification options for Ferrexpo’s open-pit mines. A joint project working group visited various mines and OEM manufacturers across North America, Asia, and Australia, and participated in industry events to evaluate available options. The research concluded that large 300-tonne electric-diesel trucks – with trolley-assist where feasible – are the most suitable choice, given the topography and scale of Ferrexpo’s mining operations. Another considered solution involves replacing the current fleet of diesel and diesel-electric locomotives with battery-electric models.
In the second phase, Ferrexpo has launched conceptual design work for a pilot trolley-assist project at its Yeristovo Mine. Engineering partners ABB and MEC Mining are helping define the project scope, including the design of power infrastructure, fleet composition, maintenance requirements, and the location of charging stations. The pilot study has already identified optimal mine pit ramps and haulage routes for the installation.
The analysis conducted has offered a comprehensive view of the project’s CAPEX and potential operating cost savings. While further steps, such as site preparations and equipment procurement, are needed before any investment decisions can be finalized, Ferrexpo has already begun preliminary discussions on possible funding options that consider both the ending and continuation of the war.
As previously reported by GMK Center, Ferrexpo had prewar plans to invest $3.3 bln to reach net zero emissions. The company has already identified key projects that will drive the majority of its carbon emissions reductions, including transitioning to biofuel in the pelletizing process, phasing out fossil fuels from energy mix, electrifying mining vehicles and equipment, introducing HVO-fueled barges.
Metso says it has contributed the core process design and technology for Fortescue Ltd’s Christmas Creek Green Metal Project in the Pilbara, Western Australia, where installation of Metso equipment commenced in September 2025.
The project will demonstrate the production of high-purity green metal using renewable energy for hydrogen-based reduction and smelting technologies for further downstream steel processing. The project incorporates Metso’s Circored™ fluidised bed direct reduction process and electric DRI Smelting Furnace to support low-emission steelmaking.
“Green metal presents a huge opportunity for Australia’s iron ore industry and Fortescue is determined to lead the way,” says Dino Otranto, Fortescue’s Chief Executive Officer of Metals and Operations. “Through the Christmas Creek Green Metal Project, we’re combining cutting-edge technologies, including Metso’s Circored™ process and DRI Smelting Furnace, with Fortescue’s proven track record in project delivery, to pioneer low-emission pathways for steelmaking.”
This initial project will have an annual output of over 1,500 metric tons, with studies underway to support development of a commercial-scale facility.
“This project, which implements the Circored™ and DRI smelting solutions, underscores our commitment to advancing sustainable and efficient industrial processes,” says Attaul Ahmad, Vice President, Ferrous and Heat Transfer at Metso. “The Circored™ process uses solely green hydrogen instead of fossil reductants. This flexible fine ore-based fluid bed process, which does not need pelletisation, produces highly metalised direct reduced iron (DRI) that can directly be used as feed material in electric smelting furnaces for carbon-free steelmaking, using low-grade iron feed.”
“The low-emission electric smelting (ESF)-based steelmaking route, which substitutes traditional blast furnaces in the production of hot metal, is well-suited for Australia’s abundant, low-to-medium-grade Pilbara iron ores. The ambitious target for the Metso DRI Smelting furnace technology is to unlock utilization of these massive iron ore reserves for green iron making, when such iron ores previously have been not suitable for the DRI steelmaking route due to higher gangue content. We are excited to see the Metso DRI Smelting Furnace taking shape at the Christmas Creek site where foundations have been laid and the first equipment was installed in September,” says Jyrki Makkonen, Vice President, Smelting at Metso.
