Protest blocks Vale's iron ore rail loadings in Brazil

Market: Freight, Metals
11/03/25

Protesters blocked Vale's Carajas railway on 9 March, according to a letter by LBH Brasil port agency sent to market participants. The blockade may disrupt iron ore shipments to Ponta da Madeira in northern Brazil and weigh on Atlantic Capesize rates, as previously happened in December 2024.

"Vale's Carajás Railroads has been impacted since 9 March, 2025, due to an occupation by protestors. The occupation has disrupted rail traffic along the corridor. As of today, the railroad remains interrupted. There are currently no concrete indications of immediate operational impacts on cargo transport. We are closely monitoring developments to assess any potential effects and will keep you informed as new information becomes available," LBH said in its letter.

Brazilian iron ore exports fell in early December after a similar blockade of the Carajás railway.

This month shipments reached just 6.2mn t in the first three working days of the month despite the Carnival holidays, and are projected to reach 39.3mn t in March, 49pc up from 26.3mn t in the same month last year, according to preliminary data. But final volumes could be significantly lower if the blockade will continue.

Vale, the iron ore producer that owns this railway, has not commented.

By Andrey Telegin

Related news posts

Argus illuminates the markets by putting a lens on the areas that matter most to you. The market news and commentary we publish reveals vital insights that enable you to make stronger, well-informed decisions. Explore a selection of news stories related to this one.

News

28/03/25

US consumer confidence down on policy angst

Houston, 28 March (Argus) — The University of Michigan's gauge of consumer sentiment fell in March to the lowest level since November 2022, led by a slump in expectations over the "potential for pain" from US economic policies introduced by the new administration. Sentiment fell to 57, down from 64.7 in February and 79.4 in March 2024, according to the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment survey released Friday. The final reading for March was lower than the preliminary reading. The sentiment index fell to a record low of 50 in June 2022 on inflation concerns. The index of consumer expectations fell to 52.6, the lowest since July 2022, from 64 in February and 77.4 in March last year. The expectations index has lost more than 30pc since November last year. "Consumers continue to worry about the potential for pain amid ongoing economic policy developments," the survey director Joanne Hsu said. The decline "reflects a clear consensus across all demographic and political affiliations: Republicans joined independents and Democrats in expressing worsening expectations … for their personal finances, business conditions, unemployment and inflation," Hsu said. Current economic conditions slipped to 63.8 in March from 65.7 in February and 82.5 last March. Two thirds of consumers expect unemployment to rise in the year ahead, the highest reading since 2009. Year-ahead inflation expectations jumped to 5pc this month, the highest reading since November 2022, from 4.3pc last month. The University of Michigan survey comes three days after The Conference Board's preliminary Consumer Expectations Index fell in March to its lowest in 12 years, to below a threshold that "usually signals" a recession. By Bob Willis Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Find out more

News

UK steel importers oppose other countries' caps

28/03/25

News

28/03/25

UK steel importers oppose other countries' caps

London, 28 March (Argus) — Steel importers in the UK suggest the imposition of a cap on any other countries' quotas could effectively stop trade, given the small volume of the quotas. In a recent submission to the Trade Remedies Authority, UK Steel said 15pc caps should be introduced on other countries quotas for hot-dip galvanised, plate and rebar. But in its submission to the TRA, trading firm Salzgitter Mannesmann argues that any cap based on a percentage of the quota "will ultimately most likely remove rather than reduce imports as shipments from many third countries, notably the far east, require a certain base volume to ship economically to the UK". Other trading firms and service centres told Argus they share the same view. Salzgitter Mannesmann also suggested a new country quotas for individual importers be added to the safeguard based on their imports over the past two or three years. The only local producer of hot-dip galvanised coil, Tata Steel, would be likely to argue against this as volumes from some countries, notably Vietnam, have increased dramatically in recent years. Salzgitter Mannesmann also suggests Tata Steel cannot produce hot-rolled coil over 1.85m wide, for which the UK has to totally rely on imports. Traders have for some time argued that there should be no import constraints on material, such as 2m wide, as there can be no injury to the producer on grades it cannot produce. Service centre Sebden Steel said the current measures make it "impossible" for the UK to be flooded with cheap foreign imports, and that people are "misinformed by mainstream media and UK Steel". "The UK producer is in a safe place already and any additional measures will only serve to cause injury to independent steel service centres, independent steel stockholders and the UK manufacturing base, which will all be faced with a further tightening of the supply chain and increased costs," it said. Importers, unsurprisingly, question why Tata Steel, now a re-roller until its electric arc furnaces are installed, can import on much more favourable terms than others. Tata has a much bigger quota than the rest of the market, at around 2.3mn t, but the main problem for importers is that the company has fewer constraints on where it can source, with only a 40pc cap on any given country within that quota. Independent service centres, which all compete with Tata Distribution, can only import much smaller quantities from different locations, given the fragmented composition of quotas; the other countries quota for 1A, for example, is less than 100,000 t/yr. EU mills have far and away the largest quota to sell 1A HRC into the UK, but given their higher costs compared with Asian producers, they struggle to compete; Tata's imports come from all over the world, as well as some from its sister mill in IJmuiden, the Netherlands. By Colin Richardson Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

News

Australia's Aurelia Metals to boost Cu, Zn processing

28/03/25

News

28/03/25

Australia's Aurelia Metals to boost Cu, Zn processing

Perth, 28 March (Argus) — Australian metal producer Aurelia Metals is set to triple mixed metal ore processing capacity of ore from its Federation mine, after authorities in New South Wales state approved a project consent change. Aurelia produces mixed metal ore at its 600,000 t/yr Federation mine. It then hauls ore to its nearby Peak processing centre to produce a range of base and precious metals, including zinc, copper, lead, and gold. The company has been allowed to move only 200,000 t/yr of ore between its two NSW sites since Federation opened in mid-2024, because of consent restrictions. But the latest change allows it to move 600,000 t/yr of ore to Peak, the company announced on 28 March. Aurelia's updated consent comes as it continues to ramp up production at Federation. The company only processed 16,500t of Federation ore in October-December 2024, recovering 55t of copper, 626t of lead, 1,263t of zinc, and 502oz of gold. Aurelia is increasing its base metal production capacity, despite other Australian producers doing the opposite. Australian metal firm IGO paused its Forrestania nickel project in July-September 2024, and will close its Nova copper and nickel mine in 2027. But this phenomenon is not unique to Australia. Global metal producer Glencore cut its total copper output by 6pc in 2024, following planned production declines in Chile and Peru, and unplanned disruptions in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Copper prices have been quite volatile over the last year. The London Metal Exchange's (LME) copper cash price stood at $8,696/t on 27 March 2024, before bouncing between a high of $10,857/t and a low of $8,620/t over the next 12 months. LME's copper price stood at $9,787/t on 27 March. By Avinash Govind Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

News

Recent deep-sea and short-sea cfr Turkey scrap deals

27/03/25

News

27/03/25

Recent deep-sea and short-sea cfr Turkey scrap deals

London, 27 March (Argus) — A summary of the most recent deep-sea and short-sea cfr Turkey ferrous scrap deals seen by Argus. Ferrous scrap deep-sea trades (average composition price, cfr Turkey) Date Volume, t Price, $ Shipment Buyer Seller Composition Index relevant 21-Mar 40,000 383 (80:20) April Izmir USA HMS 1/2 85:15, shred, bonus Y 18-Mar 30,000 376 (80:20) April Iskenderun Cont. Europe HMS 1/2 80:20, shred, bonus Y 18-Mar 40,000 381 (80:20) April Iskenderun USA HMS 1/2 80:20, shred, bonus Y 18-Mar 40,000 380 (80:20) April Marmara Baltics/Scan HMS 1/2 80:20, shred, bonus Y 17-Mar 30,000 375 (80:20) April Iskenderun Cont. Europe HMS 1/2 80:20, shred, bonus Y 14-Mar 30,000 380 (80:20) April Marmara USA HMS 1/2 80:20, shred, bonus Y 13-Mar 30,000 382 (80:20) April Iskenderun USA HMS 1/2 95:5, shred Y 13-Mar 30,000 380 (80:20) April Izmir USA HMS 1/2 80:20, shred Y 13-Mar 30,000 375 (80:20) April Izmir Cont. Europe/UK HMS 1/2 80:20, shred Y 13-Mar 30,000 380 (80:20) March Iskenderun USA HMS 1/2 80:20, shred Y Ferrous scrap short-sea trades (average composition price, cif Marmara) Date Volume, t Price, $ Shipment Buyer Seller Composition Index relevant 24-Mar 3,000 353 April Izmir Romania HMS 1/2 80:20 Y 24-Mar 3,000 351 April Bartin Romania HMS 1/2 80:20 Y 21-Mar 5,000 370 April Izmir Greece HMS 1/2 80:20 Y 21-Mar 6,000 369 April Marmara Italy HMS 1/2 80:20, bonus Y Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

News

AM/NS India to set up first scrap processing unit

27/03/25

News

27/03/25

AM/NS India to set up first scrap processing unit

Mumbai, 27 March (Argus) — Indian steelmaker ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel (AM/NS) commissioned its first scrap processing facility at Khopoli in western India's Maharashtra state. The 120,000 t/yr facility is the first of four scrap processing units planned by AM/NS to increase supply of domestic scrap. The unit is expected to be operational this year. AM/NS, which has a crude steel capacity of 9mn t/yr, has targeted increasing the scrap mix in its steelmaking from 3-5pc at present to over 10pc by 2030. The company said it can reduce conversion and logistics costs by processing scrap at its own units, instead of procuring it through a complex supply chain where scrap moves from local collectors to scrapyards to consumers. The Indian government has been pushing for higher domestic scrap production to reduce reliance on imports and aid decarbonisation efforts. A vehicle scrappage policy is currently in place, while the government in its financial year 2025-26 budget also outlined measures to boost scrap production through shipbreaking. Still, scrap production has been falling short of the industry's requirements and domestic scrap availability needs to increase, according to market sources. India's scrap imports fell last year as demand faltered and fluctuated and government spending failed to meet expectations. Scrap imports in the south Asian country stood at 8mn t in 2024, falling by just over 20pc from 10.2mn t the previous year, according to customs data. Earlier this year, the rupee's decline to a record low against the US dollar also made imported scrap unviable for many customers, including secondary scrap-based steelmaking units. AM/NS has set aside 3.5bn rupees ($40.8mn) towards a scrap production scheme. About 65pc of the company's steelmaking capacity uses the gas-based direct reduced iron-electric arc furnace (DRI-EAF) route, it said. By Amruta Khandekar Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Business intelligence reports

Get concise, trustworthy and unbiased analysis of the latest trends and developments in oil and energy markets. These reports are specially created for decision makers who don’t have time to track markets day-by-day, minute-by-minute.

Learn more