A recent surge in steel prices continued Wednesday with ArcelorMittal saying it will increase prices by $250 a ton on some steel shipments — a move that will benefit steel companies such as U.S. Steel Corp., analysts said.
Strong global demand has increased prices for hot-rolled coiled steel from $529 a ton in October to $845 [...]

Against a backdrop of rising iron ore prices, Brazilian steel producers should maintain high profit margins relative to their global peers during 2008, according to Fitch Ratings. Brazilian steel companies enjoy important competitive advantages, including modern production facilities, close proximity to sources of iron ore and a highly concentrated domestic market, which limits competition based [...]

China’s key steel industry association July 18 accused the world’s three leading iron ore producers of cutting back on supply to ensure strong prices ahead of next year’s negotiations. Brazil’s Companhia Vale do Rio Doce, Australia’s BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto are “working together” to strengthen their negotiating positions in talks with Chinese steelmakers, the [...]

Anglo-Australian mining group Rio Tinto denied on Wednesday a charge by China’s steel industry association that iron ore producers are cutting back production to boost prices.
China is the world’s biggest consumer of iron ore and faces new price negotiations next year with the “big three” producers — Rio Tinto, Brazil’s Companhia Vale do Rio Doce [...]

The steel industry will press the government for a cap on iron ore exports at 90 million tonne a year, forced by the unavailability of iron ore in the country.
Steel industry representatives are set to take up the issue with the government during the upcoming Group of Minister’s meeting in Delhi on May 28.
Officials said [...]

Nickel fell for a second day in London on speculation rising stockpiles signal slowing usage as producers seek alternatives to the metal in stainless-steel manufacturing. Copper also dropped.
Nickel inventories monitored by the London Metal Exchange rose 1,446 metric tons, or 27 percent, to 6,834 tons, the exchange said today in a daily report, the biggest [...]

Grande Cache Coal Corp. says its fourth-quarter loss widened to $4.7 million from a year-ago $2.6 million as revenue fell to $13.8 million from $27 million amid transport problems.
Bad weather, a labour dispute and track disruptions during the quarter restricted the amount of coal that could be moved to the port by CN Rail (TSX:CN), [...]

“In terms of its economic and geopolitical impact, what is happening in Asia today is probably most akin to the Industrial Revolution, when the world’s leading economies replaced manual labor with mass-scale manufacture of machinery, railways began to criss-cross the continents, the steam engine revolutionized the world, and later, skyscrapers first poked at the skies. [...]

Jharkhand has sought a 20 percent share in the centre’s profits from coal and iron ore, saying delays in the revision of royalty on minerals mined from the state were causing it a loss of Rs.35 billion annually.
The demand was put forth at a two-day meeting of the Inter State Council of Mineral Resources [...]

Irked by the hike in export duties, China’s second largest iron ore importer Sinosteel Corporation has halted imports from India.
The company made the announcement a week after India imposed a levy of Rs 300 ($7) per tonne of iron ore exported from March 1.
Management of the company were unavailable for comments.
India’s move to hike duties [...]