Hotspot of Molybdenum City: Cause Analysis of International Molybdenum Price Rising and Future Forecast

June 14, 2019:

Although early this week international molybdenum oxide rose to $12.3 per pound of molybdenum after resistance, and entered the horizontal stage, during which the price of ferromolybdenum in Europe also fell. But on Wednesday and Thursday, international molybdenum prices rose again, which is related to the ongoing strike at a molybdenum oxide processing plant and a copper-molybdenum associated mine in Chile.

Molymet, the world's largest molybdenum oxide processing company, has been suspended due to a strike at its Nos molybdenum roasting plant in central Chile after negotiations with trade unions failed. It is understood that the Chilean processing plant strike did not have a substantial impact on the company's molybdenum oxide long single supply business.

The strike at Chuquicamata Copper Mine in Codelco, another major Chilean company, has significantly boosted the price of molybdenum compared with the weak impact of Molymet's limited production of molybdenum oxide on the industry. It is understood that due to the failure of labor negotiations between Codelco and Chuquicamata, a spokesman for Chuquicamata Copper Mine 2 said that the strike would begin at 5 a.m. local time on Friday because most members of Chuquicamata Copper Mine 1, 2 and 3 rejected Codelco's latest contract proposal. The Union also said the strike could have a far-reaching impact. Chuquicamata produced 321,000 tons of copper last year, so the strike could tighten global copper supply.

As the world's largest copper company, Codelco is also the world's second largest molybdenum producer. The Chuquicamata copper mine affected by the strike is only one of the associated molybdenum copper mines under Codelco's banner. In the first quarter of 2019, the copper mine produced 2574 tons of molybdenum concentrate, with a total output of about 5720 tons of molybdenum concentrate, with an average monthly production of about 1900 tons of molybdenum concentrate. Compared with China's molybdenum mines, the production capacity is second only to Jinduicheng molybdenum industry, Luoyang Luanchuan molybdenum industry and Yichun Luming molybdenum industry.

It is reported that the strike has a direct impact on the rise of international molybdenum prices, and its rising cycle will be more affected by the strike. According to the current progress, it may continue next week.

Because molybdenum prices at home and abroad are facing multiple and complex factors such as strike stimulating molybdenum prices to continue to rise in the short term, tight supply of molybdenum concentrates in China, weak demand of Chinese steel mills restricting the price of molybdenum and iron, and export price difference of molybdenum and iron in China, there are many uncertain factors to judge whether the price of molybdenum in China will continue to fall or stop falling and rebound next week, reminding member units to be closely related. Note the progress of strikes in Chile and the change of bidding price of ferromolybdenum in China. The latest news will be released in the first time in the column of steel plant bidding, platinum internal reference and international molybdenum city. Please pay attention to it.