Acquisitions and deals came to the fore this week for aluminum’s major players. UC Rusal pledged 75% of its Irish alumina plant Aughinish Alumina against a credit from Glencore Xstrata for alumina supplies in 2014-2016.
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Not to be outdone, Alcoa (formerly aluminum company of America) invested $25 million in its Virginia jet engine plant and that was just the prelude before it acquired jet engine manufacturer Firth Rixson for $2.85 billion today. Done? Not yet. Evidence also surfaced this week that Alcoa’s partnership with Ford Motor Co. for aluminum-bodied vehicles might expand from the already-aluminum 2015 Ford F-150 to include Ford’s Super Duty pickup trucks soon.
The week’s biggest mover on the weekly Aluminum MMI® was the cash price of primary Indian aluminum, which saw a 2.3 percent increase to INR 114.00 ($1.90) per kilogram. This week marked the third in a row of rising prices for the metal. The primary aluminum cash price rose 2.1 percent on the LME to $1,866 per metric ton after falling 0.4 percent during the previous week. The 3-month price of aluminum rose 1.7 percent on the LME to $1,902 per metric ton after falling 0.1 percent during the previous week.
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Chinese aluminum prices were mixed for the week. The cash price of Chinese aluminum rose 0.6 percent to CNY 13,300 ($2,133) per metric ton after falling 1.1 percent during the previous week. Chinese aluminum bar prices held steady from the previous week at CNY 14,200 ($2,278) per metric ton. At CNY 13,590 ($2,180) per metric ton, the week finished with no movement for Chinese aluminum billet.
Prices for Korean 3003 coil premium over 1050 sheet remained constant, closing the week at KRW 3,740 ($3.67) per kilogram. Following a steady week, prices for Korean 5052 coil premium over 1050 sheet closed flat at KRW 3,890 ($3.82) per kilogram. At EUR 2,532 ($3,459) per metric ton, the price of European 5083 plate did not change since the previous week. Closing at EUR 2,139 ($2,922) per metric ton, European 1050 aluminum remained unchanged for the week.
The Aluminum MMI® collects and weights 12 global aluminum price points to provide a unique view into aluminum price trends. For more information on the Aluminum MMI®, how it’s calculated or how your company can use the index, please drop us a note at: info (at) agmetalminer (dot) com.