Few would argue that semiconductor shortages have hampered automotive output. Earlier in the year, automakers temporarily shuttered factories, cutting into output. According to Toyota, it would slash worldwide vehicle production by 40% in September because of the shortage. Globally, the market lost some 2 million vehicles due to chip shortages. As a result, automotive aluminum […]
Stuart Burns
So much for a supercycle as China’s property market weighs on outlook
Bulls are pointing to the surging metals prices as evidence a supercycle is alive and well. However, no one but a snake oil salesman would suggest that what we are seeing is anything healthy. The 10-year commodities boom seen earlier this century, for example, was driven by rapid industrialization in China, a long-term expansion that […]
Power crisis in China drives aluminum alloy prices higher, threatening supplies
A timely post by the Financial Times covers the threat to the global auto industry as a result of the power crisis in China limiting supplies of key components used across a range of industries. But specific to the post is the making of aluminum alloys. Almost 90% of the world’s magnesium production comes from […]
Copper market shows signs of distress; views differ on copper supply outlook
There doesn’t appear to be a lot of consensus around the copper market. On the one hand, according to Reuters, the International Copper Study Group (ICSG) reports the global refined copper market will be roughly balanced between supply and demand this year. Meanwhile, the group forecasts a significant supply surplus in 2022. The ICSG is […]
Further bad news for metals consumers: alloying element shortages
We wrote recently about the impact power rationing and rising coal costs were having on metals producers in Europe. Well, it would seem that is not the only driver pushing semi-finished product prices higher this month. Each month, MetalMiner hosts a webinar on a specific metals topic. Explore the upcoming webinars and sign up for […]
What’s next for US Section 232 tariffs on EU steel, aluminum?
Talk of trade meetings are usually met with a yawn and click to the next news item. However, last week’s meeting between the E.U. and the U.S. in Pittsburgh may be one event worth following. Each month, MetalMiner hosts a webinar on a specific metals topic. Explore the upcoming webinars and sign up for each […]
Soaring European power costs force cutbacks in metals output
It was only a matter of time, as a fourfold increase in power costs for some heavy consumers, on top of environmental carbon emissions levies, have finally proved too much for some European metals producers. Each month, MetalMiner hosts a webinar on a specific metals topic. Explore the upcoming webinars and sign up for each […]
Chinese iron ore prices rising strongly again despite property market fears
Chinese iron ore prices have certainly been on a roller coaster ride this year, hitting a record high in value terms after a period in which the price had risen and fallen sharply. Futures on the Dalian exchange for delivery in January 2022 are now trading at RMB 777 per ton. That compares with about […]
Europe follows China, India in battling rising energy costs
We have written twice over the last week concerning the energy crunch, first in China and then India. Thermal coal prices have risen to record levels, threatening to impact GDP growth as a result of electricity rationing. The Financial Times observes that China has suffered a triple whammy of emissions restrictions on power generation, a […]
India follows China into a coal crisis
You do not have to look too hard to find failures of state-run economies around the world. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, there is less enchantment with the model — outside China, anyway — than there once was. But what we remain plagued with is the idea government has a role in the […]
