Both OPEC and the International Energy Agency are predicting next year’s market to be one of the tightest in recent history. According to a Financial Times post, the two bodies have based this assumption on recovering demand in China and continued growth in India. The prediction also runs counter to widespread fears of recession. With […]
Stuart Burns
Aluminum Prices: Is China Turning on the Stimulus Taps?
It is not an idle question. For the last two decades, China’s infrastructure spending has been the engine of demand growth for steel, copper, and aluminum prices. So when the South China Morning Post reported that local governments sold 1.94 trillion yuan (US$289 billion) worth of bonds in June to fund infrastructure spending and boost […]
Do Aluminum Smelter Shutdowns Impact Physical Delivery Premiums?
Soaring power costs in Europe wrecked havoc on the aluminum industry. In fact, several aluminum smelter sites have partially or temporarily shuttered this year. As most people know, power costs surged starting last year due to increasing oil and natural gas prices. However, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine turbo-charged this escalation. With Ukraine being a key […]
Vladimir Potanin Sanctioned by the UK and Nickel Price Impact
The UK government has added Vladimir Potanin, Norilsk Nickel’s president and chairman of the management board, to its list of sanctioned individuals. The LME nickel price remains in question. A June 29 update notification from HM Treasury’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) noted Potanin’s addition. The stated reason was that he would benefit from […]
UK Proposing Extension of Protectionist Steel Measures
In desperate times, politicians turn to increasingly desperate policies to prop up support. This remains the case for British steel. Recently, the UK’s Boris Johnson has been dodging accusations that he repeatedly lied to parliament. This, combined with his seeming inability to admit his failings, has pushed political turmoil in the country to a fever […]
Aluminum prices, stock and delivery premiums veer in different directions
So far this year, on LME aluminum trading, inventory levels have directly correlated with price direction. Aluminum demand has outstripped supply causing falling inventory levels, and many assume prices are due to rise, except they’re not. According to a Reuters report, LME inventories fell steadily this year with total inventory down by 479,000 metric tons […]
Costs at the Pump Outperforming Even Elevated Crude Prices
Back in the 1970’s, Arab oil embargoes caused short-term pain for the West due to rising crude prices. However, it also spurred a drive for fuel efficiency that ultimately reduced the country’s reliance on foreign oil. At the same time, it boosted the GDP per unit of energy consumed. Will history repeat itself? There’s no […]
Rolled Aluminum Anti Dumping Suspension on China by European Commission Ends
The EU has announced an end to the temporary suspension of anti-dumping duties on rolled aluminum products into the block. The suspension was set to expire in July. The news comes hot on the heels of last week’s announcement that the UK would establish provisional duties for six months while it carries out an anti-dumping […]
Metal Market News: Glencore Hit By Record Fines
$1.5 billion US is a lot of money by any measure. However, the reality is that Glencore is making so much in this climate of metal scarcity and elevated prices, they likely won’t have a hard time accommodating the fine. So when metal market news broke of their massive, three nation fine, there was not […]
UK moves to slap anti dumping duties on aluminium bar imports from China
The UK Trade Remedies Authority announced on Friday, May 20, that new measures should be put in place to “protect the UK’s aluminum extrusion industry” from dumped Chinese products.” The surprise move comes after an 11-month investigation into inconsistencies with aluminum bar imports. The TRA made the recommendation to the organization’s current Secretary of State […]
