Regístrese a continuación y personalizaremos una solución que satisfaga sus necesidades específicas. Cuando hable con uno de nuestros expertos, es posible que esté calificado para probar nuestros productos líderes en la industria de forma gratuita.
Puede cancelar su suscripción a estas actualizaciones en cualquier momento. Argus gestiona la información personal de acuerdo con nuestra Política de privacidad.US plate maker Nucor kept its plate prices for December flat.
The company announced on 3 November that it would keep its ex-works discrete plate prices for December flat at $1,620/short ton (st). The announcement is the second consecutive time Nucor has kept discrete plate prices flat after lowering them by $120/st on 19 September.
Cut-to-length prices were also kept flat.
The Argus US plate ex-works price has been mostly flat around $1,620/st since Nucor's mid-September price decrease.
London, 24 March (Argus) — The Middle East energy and fuel crisis could place immediate pressure on battery metals mining, particularly where operations rely heavily on diesel for haulage, transport and on-site activity. But the effects would not be uniform across the supply chain. While upstream mining is most directly exposed to fuel availability and price shocks, logistics could affect the entire supply chain if primary production goes off line. Some mining operations in southern Africa, Australia and southeast Asia may be affected by diesel shortages and price increases, early assessments suggest. At least four refineries in the Mideast Gulf have some units closed, even as a precaution, following missile or drone attacks. But those that remain on line are mostly finding it impossible to export their products through the strait of Hormuz. The Mideast Gulf exported 53mn t of diesel and related gasoil products in 2025, according to Vortexa ship tracking, representing around 13pc of global shipments. Only two tankers carrying non-Iranian clean oil products have navigated the strait of Hormuz in the past couple of days . Ports in South Africa and Tanzania had around two months' worth of diesel in stock that is now moving towards the interior of Africa, a source at a copper/cobalt mining company in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) told Argus on 12 March. Some mining operations may be forced to reduce fuel consumption by mid-April if the strait of Hormuz does not open soon. Two other logistics companies in Zambia warned of fuel shortages — truckers will be in "limbo" from the first week in April, a source said. Zambia is a key route between the copperbelt and some of the ports on the east coast of South Africa, including Durban, which handles large volumes of copper and cobalt. Most copper/cobalt belt producers use diesel for logistics, open pit haulage and in some cases to power dense media separation machines that concentrate ore, and various other mine site activities. Around 80pc of the DRC's power comes from hydro-electricity, according to the IEA, although diesel generators are used in areas with limited connectivity and as a back-up. Much of this diesel comes through the eastern ports of Dar Es Salaam, Durban and Beira, which have so far experienced limited direct disruption to operations as a result of the US-Iran war. But if shipping continues to be disrupted in the Middle East, these key ports could become extremely crowded as vessels seek alternative stopping points for Asia-Europe-Africa trade. "They could be refuelling destinations or trans-shipping routes if the Red Sea closes," a trader said. Australia's acute exposure The Australian government has already lowered fuel standards in preparation for supply chain issues and there have been localised shortages at gas stations, mainly because of short-term panic-buying. But Australia is exposed to shortages as it sources most of its diesel from Asia, which gets it from the Middle East. Six fuel shipments to Australia were cancelled last week and government ministers warned that supply in the second half of April is uncertain. Australia's oil reserves were at 49 days last week, the IEA said, the lowest among member states. Hard-rock lithium mining in Australia is likely to face fuel pressures, particularly at the mine and concentrator level. Chinese market participants have already expressed concern to Argus over spodumene supply from April. Some of the largest lithium operations in the world, such as Greenbushes, Pilgangoora and Mt Marion, rely heavily on diesel for haulage, drilling and remote-site logistics, while electricity is primarily used for crushing, grinding and concentration. This makes upstream spodumene production one of the most directly exposed parts of the battery supply chain to a sustained fuel shock. While most large operators have fuel procurement strategies in place, sustained disruption to global diesel supply or sharp price increases could raise marginal production costs and put pressure on higher-cost producers. Indonesia nickel partially insulated Indonesia's nickel processing sector has a different exposure to the crisis, with greater threats to fertilisers like sulphur and sulphuric acid . High-pressure acid leach and nickel pig iron operations depend heavily on electricity, but much of this power is supplied by captive coal-fired plants located near the sites, rather than imported gas. This may provide some insulation from immediate gas supply disruptions. But the sector is not immune. Diesel is still required for mining and internal logistics, while broader energy market disruption could affect input costs and shipping. By Thomas Kavanagh Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Singapore, 24 March (Argus) — Southeast Asian countries, hit by energy disruptions following the now weeks-long Middle East war, are now backing swifter electric vehicle (EV) transition in efforts to mitigate similar fallout in the future. Growing uncertainty in regional fuel supply has prompted countries in southeast Asia to diversify their energy or fuel import sources in the more immediate term. Meanwhile, a quicker shift to EVs and renewable energy is seen as a longer-term measure, even as EV sales in the region recorded big jumps in 2025. "This is a wake-up call," Indonesian president Prabowo Subianto said last week, in a call to push for electrification and renewable energy. Indonesia aims to have 100GW of solar power in "no later than two years", up from its current 11GW, he said, with earlier plans including battery energy storage system (Bess) deployments. "We will convert all motorcycles into electric motorcycles. All cars, all trucks, all tractors must [also] be electric," he added. Meanwhile, the Laos government has slashed EV fees and service charges by 30pc while raising charges for fuel vehicles by the same amount, according to a statement from the prime minister's office on 13 March. The government has also mandated that transport companies' EV fleet share reach at least 10pc by the end of 2026. The Laos government will also simplify import procedures for EVs and is considering raising the excise tax rate for fuel vehicles. The Vietnamese government called for 50pc of city public transport to switch to EVs and for greater biofuels use, according to a directive that it issued on 19 March. The directive was part of a sweeping energy conservation effort, with the government citing the country's dependence on energy imports given the current conflict in the Middle East. It also aims to further integrate Bess to support the power grid. Vietnam is already targeting up to 16.3GW of ESS by 2030. By June, Vietnam's finance ministry is required to look into measures to encourage EV production and adoption, according to the directive. Similar instructions went out to all its provinces and cities' people's committees, responsible for local administration. The government directed them to issue measures by September to promote EV charging station investment and develop "clean transportation vehicles", including electric public transport. The Philippines' senate committee's energy vice-chair Win Gatchalian last week also called for a quicker EV transition for its public utility vehicles (PUVs). The country's landmark Electric Vehicle Industry Development Act — authored by Gatchalian — is currently offering its EV drivers priority vehicle registration and renewal, alongside access to public charging infrastructure. The Philippines, under the more optimistic clean energy scenario in its EV roadmap , envisions 50pc EV adoption by 2040, or at least 10pc by 2040 under its conservative scenario. But dwindling incentives in other regional EV leaders such as Singapore and Thailand are also signalling hesitancy to extend domestic sales boosters in more mature EV markets. Thailand recorded a big jump in battery EV registrations in 2025. But the government altered its EV policy late last year to encourage exports instead of domestic sales to avoid a potential supply glut. Meanwhile, Singapore's preferential additional registration fee rebate, aimed at encouraging early de-registration of older, more pollutive cars, was cut by 45pc earlier this year, now capped at S$30,000 ($23,453). Its neighbour, Malaysia, removed its excise duty exemptions on completely built-up EVs since the beginning of 2026. By Joseph Ho Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
London, 23 March (Argus) — Buyers and sellers are unhappy with the flat product quotas proposed by the UK department of business and trade and want them to be amended. A domestic producer has called for an emergency meeting with the government to discuss the matter, sources said. The proposed cut in hot-rolled coil (HRC) — down by more than 800,000 t/yr to about 102,000 t/yr — is deemed too big, as the local producer would struggle to fulfil this additional demand and is unable produce some of the dimensions required by the market. Consumption of 2m-wide HRC exceeds the new proposed quota, buyers said. Germany alone supplied more than 96,000t to the UK last year, import data show, with around 80pc of that (approximately 76,850t) likely 2m wide. Buyers and shipping sources said they import 2m-wide material under HS codes 720836, 37, 38 and 39, depending on the thickness. This exceeds the entire EU quota allocation of 68,226t for all gauges of HRC. But there could be other widths contained in imports under these codes. Buyers are happier with the reduction to the hot-dippped galvanised (HDG) quota, which is down from 1.9mn t to 1.1mn t, but sellers and even some buyers have questioned the increased tonnage given to South Korea and Vietnam. Vietnam has a proposed annual quota of 174,367t and South Korea 100,753t, totalling over 275,000t, compared with 50,938t each under the current capped quota. There has been talk of a potential anti-dumping case on HDG from multiple countries in the past nine months and both would likely be in scope, so it seems strange to increase their shares at the expense of more established supply from Europe and elsewhere, sources said. The quotas for both categories would likely have to be changed, mill sources said. One problem is the lack of clarity over UK quotas into the EU. UK access to the EU may not even be clear by 1 July, when the new measures in both regions begin. The more access UK mills get to the EU market, the less domestic protection they require. There is also concern over rebar, non-alloy merchant bar and sections availability, given the extent of the reductions. Turkey has lost its ~13,000t/quarter quota under the proposed 12B quota, while buyers said the quotas for cold-drawn bar are also low. EU sections producers are also unhappy at the extent of their cut. The department of business and trade does "not comment on leaks and will publish the full details of our measure shortly", it said. The equilibrium of discontent suggests that the final volumes will be different than those contained in the leak. By Colin Richardson Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
London, 20 March (Argus) — UK hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices will surge in the coming months if the government goes ahead with a plan to reduce quotas by almost 90pc , attendees of the International Steel Trade Association (ISTA) forum told Argus . A confidential provisional document from the UK business and trade ministry shows annual 1A HRC quotas of 68,226t for the EU, 12,405t for India 3,258t for South Korea and 18,452t for other countries. This equates to around 102,000t, compared with a current quota of almost 1mn t. Around 630,000t was imported into the 1A quota last year, substantially below the total volume, but much higher than the provisionally proposed quota. The final quotas could change, sources suggested, depending on how much access UK producers get to the EU, which is also establishing a new quota from July. But UK market prices, which had already started to jump in response to Tata Steel UK's £125/t hike earlier this month, are already reacting. Service centres are now offering hot-rolled sheet above £800/t, up from around £550/t just a few weeks ago. More increases are likely in the coming weeks, with several service centres suggesting the inflation would severely hamper consumption given the already constrained demand environment. One large service centre, which buys limited domestic material, said it could see HRC prices reaching £900/t. Argus ' weekly UK HRC assessment was £645/t ddp yesterday. EU mills with spare capacity to sell into the UK before July are likely to push offers even higher — some offers were already at £700/t ddp before the document circulated. UK prices were at a discount to EU levels late last month, but have already increased to a €37/t premium, which is likely to rise sharply in the coming months. Should the quota be reduced to 102,000t, there would be large shortages on some grades, such as 2m wide HRC, which is widely used but not produced in the UK. Two large service centres, which both procure little domestically, could each easily buy more than the proposed quota, based on their current throughput. A much smaller cut has been proposed for the hot-dip galvanised (HDG) quota — which would drop from around 1.9mn t to 1.1mn t but give more volume to low-cost suppliers South Korea and Vietnam — prompting some to suggest that HRC prices could outstrip HDG. By Colin Richardson Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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