Indonesia has asked the United States to begin talks on a trade deal for critical minerals so that exports from the Southeast Asian country can be covered under the US Inflation Reduction Act, an Indonesian ministry said on Thursday.

The 2311 ferrosilicon contract price on ZCE closed at 7300 yuan per ton on September 7.

Brazilian miner Vale said on Tuesday it expects to start building "mega hubs" in Middle Eastern countries next year to make low-carbon iron ore products for the steel industry, with the first one becoming operational in 2027.

No. 2 iron-ore miner Vale said the outlook for China’s steel-intensive property sector is “more encouraging” despite uncertainties, and reiterated its long-term view of the global steel market remains intact.

Vale Base Metals has committed nearly $9-billion for investment in Indonesia, including for its development of high-pressure acid leaching (HPAL) plants for nickel, chief executive Deshnee Naidoo said on Thursday.

The 2311 ferrosilicon contract price on ZCE closed at 7330 yuan per ton on September 6.

Normalized plate pricing also fell by $40/st to $1,730/st.

De Tian Coking started production with its first coke oven on 28 August, with projected output for 2023 less than 1.3mn t.