Offers of Minor Metals in Europe (2017-07-3)

The cobalt industry chain remained under pressure this week. Refined cobalt shot up and then pulled back amid phased purchasing, with the electronic trading price retreating from 289,000 yuan/mt to around 275,000 yuan/mt. Quotes and transactions for intermediate products remained absent, and sales pressure on miners gradually accumulated. Cobalt salt demand was weak, and cobalt sulphate fell into a negative feedback loop of "price cuts—losses—raw material declines—lower costs," with some recycled-source quotes dropping to 57,000–58,000 yuan/mt. Cobalt chloride and Co3O4 continued to weaken under downstream production cuts and sluggish end-use consumption. Cobalt powder downstream users were still digesting high-priced inventory, and new purchasing had yet to begin. Ternary cathode precursor and ternary cathode material prices fell along with nickel, cobalt, and lithium raw materials, with sluggish power demand prompting enterprises to turn cautious in quoting and purchasing. LCO's "September peak season" expectations fell through, with weakening cost support and insufficient end-user stockpiling, leaving short-term prices still at risk of further decline. Some enterprises may carry out small-scale stockpiling before the National Day holiday, but whether the industry chain can stabilize still depends on the recovery of end-use demand and the pace of inventory destocking.

Peru’s Central Reserve Bank reported that the country’s molybdenum export volume rose 75.3% year on year in July 2026, in line with higher production. The increase points to stronger outbound shipments that month. Export volume and mine production are different measures, however, and one month’s shipments do not establish the outlook for future output or global supply.

South Africa's state-owned freight logistics group Transnet reported a R4.6 billion profit for the financial year ended March 31, 2026, its first annual profit in four years, reversing a R1.9 billion loss in the prior year. Revenue rose 7.1% to R88.6 billion, driven by higher rail and pipeline volumes together with weighted average tariff increases. Rail volumes, handled by Transnet's largest operating division, increased 4.9% to 167.9 million mt from 160.1 million mt a year earlier, while pipeline volumes grew 6.9% to 14.3 billion litres. EBITDA rose 0.7% to R30.9 billion, with the EBITDA margin narrowing 2.2 percentage points to 34.8%, and net operating expenses increased 10.8% to R57.7 billion. A substantial portion of the profit stemmed from a once-off transaction rather than operations. Transnet disposed of a 49.999% interest in the Durban Gateway Terminal to International Container Terminal Services Inc. for R10.5 billion, effective January 1, 2026, generating a R12.5 billion profit on disposal including a related fair value adjustment. Group CEO Michelle Phillips said the company still has a long way to go in its recovery, noting that rail volumes remain below the previously announced 180 million mt target, which she described as a prerequisite for the underlying business to break even. Borrowings rose to R150.7 billion, and capital investment totalled R23.3 billion during the year, with a further R129.1 billion planned over the next five years. The results carry relevance for South Africa's chrome sector, which depends on Transnet's rail and port network to move record chrome ore export volumes, and where rail and port logistics constraints have been repeatedly cited by industry bodies as a structural drag on ferroalloys competitiveness, forcing greater reliance on costlier road transport. Transnet also reported progress on opening its rail network to third-party operators, having concluded Rail Access Agreements with 11 train operating companies, with the first services expected to commence during the 2026/27 financial year. Transnet's results did not disclose chrome ore or ferroalloys-specific volumes within the rail or port figures, leaving the extent of any improvement in chrome-specific logistics performance unquantified.