Latest News
-
Iron ore prices fall as demand falls amid positive signs
Dalian iron-ore futures fell on Wednesday for the second consecutive session due to a weakening of steel demand. However, better than expected factory data from China's top consumer helped limit losses. As of 0247 GMT the?most-traded iron ore contract for May on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange?traded at?0.94% less than its previous price, which was 786.5 Yuan ($112.55) per metric ton. However, it has gained 9.71% in this year. The benchmark iron ore for February on the Singapore Exchange, however, traded at 0.07% more, $105.75 per ton. This represents a 10.12% gain so far in this year. Everbright Securities in China said that domestic steel demand has declined rapidly from month to month. It expects the trend to continue. The broker said that "the rapid decline in domestic steel demand will dominate prices on the medium-term". China Iron & Steel Association has echoed this sentiment, stating that cold weather in northern China will cause construction to stop. They also said there are signs of a weakening downstream industry. The rise in inventories also impacted prices. Mysteel data showed that the total stocks of imported iron ore fines for blast furnace steel production in China increased by 554,700 tonnes, or 4.6% from December 24. The Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), which measures the purchasing power of Chinese businesses, showed unexpected growth in China during December, ending eight months of decline. The National Bureau of Statistics survey on Wednesday showed that the manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI), which measures the level of buying by manufacturers, rose from 49.2 to 50.1 points in December, a significant increase from the previous month. This is above the 50 point mark separating expansion from contraction. In a poll, it beat the analysts' prediction of?49.2. It is a positive sign for China's manufacturing industry, as it is the largest steel consumer in the world. Coking coal and coke, which are both steelmaking ingredients, were mixed on the DCE. The benchmark steel prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange are mixed. Rebar fell by 0.54%; hot-rolled coils dropped by 0.52%; wire rods lost 0.56%, and stainless steel firmed up 0.23%.
-
Trump issues his first vetoes of the second term for Colorado water project, and Florida tribal measure
Lauren Boebert of Colorado Republican Lawmaker, a former MAGA ally, who recently challenged Trump on the Jeffrey Epstein Files, immediately condemned Donald Trump's veto. Late on Tuesday, the White House announced Trump vetoed the Finish the Arkansas Valley Conduit Act (AVC), which had been unanimously approved by the House of Representatives as well as the Senate. A second measure, affecting a Florida-based project, was also rescinded. These were Trump's first two vetoes during his second term. The Colorado project was vetoed after Trump's promise to retaliate for the state's refusal to release his ally Tina Peters, despite the fact that he had tried to pardon her earlier in the month. Boebert also took action to force the government to release the files of the late sexual offender, Epstein. Peters, former Colorado county clerk is currently serving a 9-year sentence in prison after being convicted of state charges for illegally tampering voting machines during the 2020 presidential election. Trump's pardon only covers federal charges, and the state refuses to release Peters. Boebert condemned Trump's veto in a X statement. She called the bill "completely noncontroversial and bipartisan." Boebert added that she hoped "this veto had nothing to do" with political retaliation because of her calling out corruption. The bill funded a long-term project to provide safe drinking water in 39 communities on Colorado's Eastern Plains where groundwater levels are high and wells can release radioactivity. In a letter to Congress, Trump stated that he had vetoed this measure in order to "prevent American taxpayers from funding costly and unreliable policy." It wasn't immediately clear whether the Republican leaders would allow a vote overriding Trump's veto. Boebert, Marjorie Taylor Greene and four other Republican legislators?played an important role in forcing the disclosure of Justice Department documents on Epstein. Trump fought against the release of these files for several months before he finally relented. White House: Trump also vetoed the measure that would have spent $14 million on?protecting an area called Osceola Camp in the Everglades National Park, which is inhabited members of the Miccosukee Tribe of Native Americans. This tribe has fought Trump's "Alligator alcatraz" makeshift detention center for immigrants. The detention center has been shut down by a federal judge. Trump claimed that the tribe had never been authorized to live in the Osceola Camp region, and that his administration would not fund projects for special interest groups, particularly those "unaligned with" his immigration policy. Reporting by Andrea Shalal, Kanishka Singh and Caitlin Feast; editing by Caitlin Feast and Lincoln Feast.
-
Sources say that China has begun issuing the second batch of crude import quotas for 2026 to refiners
Two people with a direct understanding of the matter said that at least one independent Chinese refiner received its second round of government quotas 2026 for 'crude oil imports.' More refiners are expected to receive their allocations in the near future. One source said that the independent refiner in eastern China had received 11 million metric tonnes, or 220,000 barrels a day, from the first two quota batches combined. According to the source, the newest allocation, in combination with a small batch released at the end of November, represents about 70% of the refiner’s total quota next year. Sources declined to identify themselves or the company as the information wasn't public. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce which issues crude oil import quotas did not reply to a fax asking for comment. Two sources familiar with the situation say that independent?refiners in the eastern refinery hub of Shandong Province, also called teapots or teapotters, expect to receive their quotas on Wednesday, or in the next few days. They added that the first two batches combined of quota for each teapot should account for 70% or their total yearly. The first two batches of 2025 will?account for the full year allocation for each refiner. Beijing did not explain why it?reduced its issued volume. China regulates its oil imports through a quota-based system. The total allocation for 2026 has been set at 257 millions tons, the same as a year ago. Beijing released a quota of 8 million tons in late November as the first batch of 2026. This quota will be used to cover cargoes that arrive by the end this year. Reporting by Florence Tan in Singapore, Sam Li in Beijing, and Siyi Liu in Beijing. Editing by Thomas Derpinghaus.
-
Indians prefer bars and coins to jewellery as gold reaches record highs
Prachi Kadam, a Mumbai-based homemaker, has been buying gold jewellery to mark the festive season for nearly 20 years. She combines tradition and personal style. The record price rise this year, however, led Prachi Kadam to opt for a 10-gram coin rather than necklaces or bracelets. Kadam said, "I love jewellery because it can be worn at functions. But, I find it hard to justify an extra 15% in making fees." Kadam is one of millions of Indians who consider buying gold during festivals auspicious. "I settled on a 10-gram piece of coin this time," said Kadam. Her decision is part of a larger shift in India. The country has one of the largest gold markets in the world, and the metal has a deep cultural and economic significance. Consumers are turning away from jewellery and towards small coins and gold bars as prices continue to rise. This is the biggest annual increase in 46 years. Global gold prices have risen 67% this year due to a combination of factors including U.S. rate cuts, a weaker currency and strong demand for safe-haven investments. They reached a record high on December 26, reaching $4,549.7 a troy ounce. Indian gold prices rose 77% in this year. This outpaced the Nifty 50's 9.7% increase, and was aided by a 5% drop in the rupee versus the dollar. The price surge changes buying habits Analysts claim that the trend will continue into 2026 and cushion a fall in demand. This is in line with a global slowdown of ornament purchases due to an increase in bullion price. Others may choose to buy less gold instead of abandoning their jewellery. Nibeditachakraborty, a Kolkata resident, said that her household budget had not kept up with the?rising price of goods. She therefore switched to lighter designs. Chakraborty stated that reducing the weight by just six or seven gram of a gold pendant can save you more than 100,000 rupees (1,114 dollars). Saurabh Gadgil said that as prices increase, consumers become more value- and design-conscious. In June, the company launched a sub-brand of lighter and lower-carat jewelry. Gadgil stated that modern craftsmanship makes lightweight jewellery more aspirational than entry level. The World Gold Council (WGC), a global trade association, reported that India's gold demand in the first nine month of 2025 fell by 14% compared to the same period last year. Jewellery consumption dropped 26%, to 278 tons, while investment rose 13%, to 185 tonnes. The World Gold Council (WGC) reported that investment accounted for a record 40 percent of the total demand over this period, underscoring gold's role as an important store of wealth among Indian households. Prithviraj KOTHARI, President of the India Bullion and Jewellers Association, said that the shift from jewellery to investment gold is expected to continue through 2026. Kothari stated that consumers are buying gold coins, gold bars or gold ETFs in the belief that "the rally" will continue. WGC reports that India's gold-backed ETFs have seen an inflow of $3.3 Billion, or 28.7 tonnes, this year. This has increased their holdings to 86.2 tonnes. Metals Focus, a leading industry consultancy, expects India's jewellery market to continue to soften into 2026. The full-year jewellery consumption is projected to decline by another 9%. It added that as gold becomes less affordable, consumers have shifted their jewellery preferences to lighter weights and lower carataages. Santosh Kataria is the chairman of DP Abhushan Ltd. He said that there has been a growing acceptance for lower-carat jewelry, such as 18-carat or 14-carat options. This is especially true amongst younger customers and professionals. Kataria stated that these pieces are suitable for everyday use and allow the buyer to stay within budget while enjoying attractive designs.
-
Musk's xAI purchases third building to expand AI computing power
Elon Musk announced on Tuesday that his artificial intelligence startup xAI purchased a 'third building' to expand its infrastructure. The goal is to increase xAI's?"training capacity" to almost 2 gigawatts of compute?power. xAI is stepping up its efforts to train more advanced models in order to better compete with the industry leaders OpenAI ChatGPT and Anthropic Claude. Colossus is the company's supercomputer in Memphis, Tennessee, which it claims to be the world's largest. Musk posted on?X that "xAI bought a third property called MACROHARDRR", without revealing its location. This term could be a play off Microsoft's name. The 'Information', which first reported on the news earlier that day, citing a property record and a source familiar with the project said a supersized third data center was planned to be built outside Memphis. xAI plans to expand the supercomputer Colossus so that it can house 1 million?graphics processor units. The Information reported that the startup plans to begin converting the newly-purchased warehouse into a 'data center' in 2026. It also noted that the 'new data center' and Colossus 2 were both close to a xAI natural gas power plant xAI will be building in the area as well as to other power sources. Environmental activists have criticized the expansion of AI infrastructure because data centers use a lot of energy. xAI didn't immediately respond to a comment request. (Reporting and editing by Shilpa Majumdar in Bengaluru, Harshita Varghese from Bengaluru)
-
Gold returns to top off the best year for over 40 years
The precious metals market rebounded on Tuesday after a sharp drop in the previous session. As the'market refocused? on geopolitical risks and economic concerns, gold rallied to end its best year since 1978. At 2:07 pm, spot gold was up 0.8% at $4,364.70 an ounce. ET (1907 GMT). It recorded its largest daily percentage loss since November 21. Profit-taking drove it down from the record high of $4,549.71 on Friday. U.S. Gold Futures closed 1% higher, at $4.386.30. "We experienced extreme volatility yesterday, with strong trading in Asia to the upside, followed by substantial profit-taking... But things have stabilized a bit today, and the trade is still generally favorable," said Peter Grant. Gold, a "safe-haven" asset, has risen 66% since 2025, its steepest rise since 1979. This is due to a perfect storm of interest rate easing and geopolitical tensions, as well as central bank purchases, ETFs backed by bullion, and robust central bank purchasing. Minutes of the most recent two-day meeting show that the U.S. Federal Reserve only agreed to lower interest rates in December after a nuanced discussion about the current risks to the U.S. economic system. Investors expect rates to remain unchanged at the next Fed meeting on January 27-28. Grant stated that "the market is still sceptical about the Russia-Ukraine deal and the wider?measures geopolitical risks remain elevated", which supports prices. Russia claimed that Ukraine was attempting to "attack" President Vladimir Putin's residence, and promised retaliation. Ukraine denied the claim. Silver increased 7.3%, to $77.48 an ounce. On Monday, it reached an 'all-time high' of $83.62, before recording its largest daily drop since August 2020. Silver prices have risen 168% in the past year due to its inclusion on a list of critical minerals, shortages, and growing investor and industrial interest. Platinum increased 5.1%, to $2216.45 an ounce. Platinum also reached a record-high on Monday of $2,478.50 before experiencing its largest-ever drop in a single day. Palladium increased 1.6% to $1.639.08 after falling by around 16% Monday.
-
India has imposed a three-year tax on certain steel products in order to reduce imports of cheap steel.
According to an order from the Finance Ministry published on Tuesday, India has imposed a tariff between 11% and 12% for three years on certain steel products. The government wants to stop cheap shipments coming from China. Locally known as the safeguard duty, the levy will be imposed in three years at a rate of 12% in the first, 11.5% in the second and 11% in third. The measure was published in the official government gazette and excludes imports of certain developing countries. However, China, Vietnam, Nepal, and other Asian countries will be subject to the levy. The levy will not be applied to stainless steel or specialty steels. The federal steel ministry has said repeatedly that it does not wish to see the domestic steel industry suffer due to imports at low prices and "substandard" products. In April, the government implemented a 200-day temporary tariff of 12 percent. The Directorate General of Trade Remedies recommended a three-year duty, after finding that "recently, suddenly, sharp and significant increases in imports" were causing or threatening to cause a serious injury to the domestic industry. U.S. President Donald Trump's steel import tariffs have sparked a wave of trade friction over Chinese Steel, with countries such as South Korea and Vietnam imposing?anti-dumping levies this year. (Reporting and writing by Rajveer Pardesi, Bengaluru. Editing by Joe Bavier.
-
Nickel reaches 14-month high, copper claws up
Prices of copper jumped on Tuesday, as speculators re-started their buying spree. However, they remained well below the record highs set in the previous session. Some investors were concerned that end users might hold back on purchases. The benchmark three-month copper price on the London Metal Exchange rose 3.1% by 1700 GMT to $12 606 per metric ton, after hitting a record high of $12 960 on Monday. A?trader' said that copper?got a lift as U.S. funds resumed their buying at the opening of the U.S. stock market. This was amid renewed risk-on sentiment on financial markets. European shares hit record highs following a...subdued Asian session and gold bounced back. LME copper prices have risen 43% in the past year. This is due to a combination of factors, including a weaker US dollar, concerns about mine disruptions affecting?supply and heavy speculative buying. Analysts at Sucden Financial wrote in a report that "base metals will likely remain headline and flow driven, with the upside susceptible to profit-taking before liquidity improves early in January." The price of copper in China fell as a result of a weaker Chinese market. The Shanghai Futures Exchange's most traded contract closed the daytime trading at 98.090 yuan per ton, down 2.4%. The Yangshan copper is a premium The Chinese appetite for copper imports fell to $53 per ton, down from $55 a week earlier, but still an improvement over the $40 it was at in mid-October. LME nickel rose 6.1% to $16,780 per ton on short-covering amid fears about reduced production from top producer Indonesia. It reached an intraday high of $16,855, its highest since October 2024. A minister said that the Indonesian government will cut mining output quotas to help support commodity prices. The most active nickel contract in Shanghai rose 3.9% to 132 390 yuan per ton after reaching a nine-month high of 134 480 yuan. LME aluminium rose 1% to 2,982.50 per ton. Zinc gained 1.3% at $3,128.50. Lead increased 0.3% to $2,000 and tin increased 3% to $40,965.
Indian Oil purchases first Colombian oil as part of Ecopetrol contract: sources
Indian Oil Corp bought its first Colombian crude oil as part of an 'optional supply agreement' with state oil company Ecopetrol. This was done to diversify away from Russian oil.
Indian refiners have been searching for crude oil as the tighter sanctions imposed by the U.S. on Russian oil producers and vessels and those of the European Union are causing a disruption in Russian imports.
India's Russian oil imports will plunge to a 3-year low of 1.2 million barrels per day in December. This is down from 1.84million bpd during November, according to Kpler, a ship tracking company.
Sources said that IOC purchased 2,000,000 barrels of Colombian Castilla oil for delivery by the end of February.
They said that the refiner has an option contract to purchase 12 million barrels of oil, which is equivalent to six very large crude carriers. Each VLCC is capable of carrying 2 million barrels.
The contract was signed late in 2021 and has been renewed every year since.
IOC and Ecopetrol have not responded to requests for comment.
IOC buys most of its oil from Russia and the Middle East, but rarely purchases South American grades, despite having purchase contracts with Mexico Brazil and Colombia.
Sources said that the terms of the agreement, including pricing, must be acceptable to both parties. South American crude is rarely competitive with Middle Eastern and Russian grades.
(source: Reuters)