Spot ferro-tungsten prices staged an 8.8% increase in Europe in the first half of the week, as consumers and traders had to pay up to secure tightly-available supplies.

Metal Bulletin assessed ferro-tungsten prices at $29-31.90 per kg, in-warehouse Rotterdam on Wednesday August 9, up from $27.50-28.50 per kg on August 4. Smaller volumes made up the lower end of the price range, with five tonne lots being sold for $29 per kg, while 10-tonne and truckload volumes acquired a premium as a result of tight availability. A tender for 24 tonnes was awarded just below $30 per kg on Tuesday, confirming the tight availability of spot units, giving the impetus for sellers to raise their offers after steady, relatively smaller price moves over the past few weeks. “This [tender] has made [the price increase] formal. People had already suspected the market...