www.ferroalloynet.com: Recently, the latest market prices for V2O5 and ferrovanadium in Europe are US$7.05/lb and US$26.50/kg, respectively. Known from foreign market that transaction volumes are low as the enquiries from steel mills are limited, very few orders reach a deal per week, and low-price deals still exist. It also appears that inventories at some steel mills are more than ample and that the market is well supplied.
The next three-month outlook does not look so good. The European economy is weakening, impacted by a global slowdown, trade protectionism and uncertainty about the British exit from Europe. During the Jan-July 2019 period, crude steel production in the EU dropped 2.4% YoY. In theory, demand should have rebounded in September-October after the summer holidays, but this is not the case, because the negative global outlook offsets some of the positive seasonal factors.
Although price downside could be limited from the current levels, a recovery in prices is unlikely until the end of the year.
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