Workers at Canada's Port of Montreal have gone on an open-ended strike since 26 April over contract issues and proposed changes to their working hours, potentially disrupting exports of niobium products to European markets.
It follows a 12-day strike from 10-21 August 2020 that created several weeks of backlog across bulk shipments and containers. The disruptions caused by that strike did not have much impact on ferro-niobium prices, which held steady at around $35-35.50/kg du Rotterdam in mid-August, with demand also under pressure from Covid-19 restrictions.
Spot prices have since risen by around 17pc to $40.20-42.50/kg du Rotterdam on rising demand from steel mills, tight supply and rising quarterly contract prices. For now, market participants expect the strike to have little impact on ferro-niobium prices despite supply tightness, as Niobec — the key producer shipping through the Port of Montreal — has not been offering spot shipments lately and might be able to ship from alternative nearby ports to satisfy longer-term contracts. Niobec did not respond to a request for comment by the time Argus went to press.
Canada's minister of labour Filomena Tassi has since filed a back-to-work bill to compel workers to resume operations, much to the Canadian Union of Public Employees' (CUPE) discontent. "I have no hope there will be a resolution today. The employer will just sit on their hands and wait to see the content of Minister Tassi's special legislation," CUPE representative Michel Murray said on 23 April.
