ASIAN MORNING BRIEF 15/05: Base metals trade mixed on LME; cobalt prices soften further; Turkey warns of challenge to US 232

Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mostly mixed at the close of trading on Monday May 14, with the three-month nickel contract climbing 3% during afternoon trading. Read more in our live futures report.

Here are how prices looked at the close of trading:

Cobalt prices continued to drift last week due to a lull in demand and increased availability of offers for spot metal units.

Turkey might take measures to counter the Section 232 import tariffs imposed by the United States, economy minister Nihat Zeybekçi said on May 12.

Global commodities broker Marex Spectron’s new joint venture with international space company Earth-i will diversify its research arm by bringing “New Space” technologies to the forefront of the metals market.

Chilean President Sebastián Piñera has appointed Hernán de Solminihac and Ignacio Briones as board members of state-owned copper producer Codelco, the company said on May 11.

The Russian market for hot-rolled and cold-rolled steel sheet was quiet during the week ended May 14 due to public holidays, sources told Metal Bulletin.

Import prices for rebar in Singapore were unchanged over the past week amid relative stability in the Chinese market, which led buyers and sellers to tender the same numbers in negotiations versus a week earlier.