Futures: SHFE aluminium closed at RMB 22,530 per tonne, rebounding 1.1 per cent. Despite the positive close, prices remained under pressure below all key moving averages (MA5=22,727, MA60=23,633), with the medium-term bearish alignment intact. MACD indicator lines (DIF=-244.16, DEA=-188.68) operated below the zero axis, but the green bars narrowed significantly to -110.96 (previous day -150.62), indicating a marked weakening of bearish momentum and initial signs of a technical bottom divergence repair. Trading volume expanded to 101,500 lots, suggesting capital inflows at the bottom. The recommended core trading range for SHFE aluminium is 22,000-22,800. LME aluminium closed at USD 3,078.5 per tonne, surging 2.02 per cent. Prices rebounded strongly, reclaiming MA5 (3,061.5), MA10...
Novelis is advancing beverage can coating testing and research resulting from its long-standing relationship with the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech). Researchers from Georgia Tech’s School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, working in collaboration with Novelis, have developed advanced testing capabilities that significantly reduce the time required to evaluate how beverages interact with protective coatings inside aluminum cans. The new approach allows researchers to collect data throughout the testing process, providing a clearer picture of how coatings perform while reducing testing cycles from months to just weeks. For beverage makers, faster testing could mean faster decisions about packaging and ultimately help shorten the time it takes to bring new products...
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The U.S. exports of aluminium scrap, which is not included in the government’s consumption statistics, came in at 176,000 tonnes in November 2018, representing an increase of 29,000 tonnes or 19.7% year-on-year. On a month on month basis, aluminium scraps export rose 7.3% from the October export volume of 164,000 tonnes. {newsStudioGallery} According to the latest Mineral Industry Survey report from US Geological Survey, total scrap exports stood at 1.6 million tonnes in the first eleven months of 2018, up about 12.68% from 1.42 million tonnes in the same period of 2017. The U.S. export to China in November 2018 stood at 38,300 tonnes, down 49% from November 2017 volume of 75,400 tonnes. While month on month the volume rose 36.3% from the October export volume of 28,100 tonnes. Total...
Incat Crowther has reportedly bagged a contract to design an aluminium-made high speed passenger ro-pax ferry that will operate between Pingtan Island in mainland China and Taiwanese cities of Taichung, Taipei, and Kaohsiung by Fujian Strait Shipping Co (CSF). The construction of the vessel will be done by AFAI Southern Shipyard with the use of marine grade aluminium. AFAI Southern Shipyard, located at Guangzhou, is the largest-scale and advanced manufacturer of jumbo aluminium alloy ships at present in China or even Southeast Asia. The ferry will have two vehicle decks capable of carrying 230 cars and 42 containers. The resiliently mounted passenger cabin that will include both the economy and business class will have a seating area for 1000, and will come with amenities like a duty-free...
The Dubai Gold & Commodities Exchange and its clearing house the Dubai Commodities Clearing Corporation plans to launch aluminium and zinc future contracts on March 22. DGCX, an electronic commodity and derivatives exchange offers futures and options contracts covering the precious metals, energy, equities and currency sectors. Commenting on the plan, Les Male, chief executive of DGCX said on Saturday, “The imminent launch of these two products is a response to growing demands and investor feedback, and will play an important role in the DGCX Group’s growth strategy moving forward.” He expects this launch to further strengthen their value proposition in the non-ferrous metals supply chain and expand the existing product portfolio. The aluminium and zinc future contracts will provide...
According to Shanghai Metals Market, producers of aluminium wires and cables in China saw lower operation rates in February due to poor orders and the Chinese New Year holiday. The average rates across wire and cable plants were at 47.18 per cent in the said month, down 21.67 percentage points from January, but up 7.88 percentage points from the same period last year, showed SMM survey. During the CNY holidays, most plants did not return to normal operation until February 19, found SMM. As operations at construction sites slowed down owing to cooler weather, demand for electronic wires and telecommunication cables started shrinking, further resulting in slower operations across wire and cable plants in February. Most buyers required post-holiday delivery for orders for wires and cables....
The US dollar increased to 10-week-highs against the yen last Friday, as risk appetite improved amid a more upbeat outlook on some major economies and on expectations of a trade deal between China and the US. Base metals ended mostly higher last Friday and aluminium rose 0.29%. SHFE aluminium rose 0.59%. LME aluminium rebounded to a high of $1,918.5/mt after a higher US dollar lowered it to US$1,898.50 per tonne. It is expected to trade at US$1,900-1,930 per tonne today. As on March 1, LME aluminium cash (bid) price stood at US$ 1890per tonne, LME official settlement price stands at US$ 1890.50 per tonne; 3-months bid price stands at US$ 1910 per tonne, 3-months offer price is US$ 1910.50 per tonne; Dec 20 bid price stands at US$ 2043 per tonne, and Dec 20 offer price stands at US$ 2048...
Aluminium Bahrain (Alba), the Bahrain-based aluminium smelter, announced that the company has moved one step closer to become the world’s largest smelter. Alba’s Line 6 Expansion Project has gained further momentum with the handover of 172 pots for commissioning on 01 March 2019. Commenting on this occasion, Alba’s Chairman of Board of Directors, Shaikh Daij Bin Salman Bin Daij Al Khalifa, said: “We are pleased to announce that Potline 6 is now in full ramp-up mode with the handover of the next set of 172 pots for commissioning.” “Once the start-up of the additional 172 pots is complete, Alba will have commissioned a total of 212 pots (50% of Potline 6 capacity). We look forward to see the positive financial benefits that this additional capacity will bring to our bottom-line.” Line 6...
Followed by two consecutive falls last week, the A00 aluminium ingot price is found rebounded over the weekend, showed Shanghai Metals Market on Monday, March 4, 2019. While the spot price of aluminium ingot has grown to RMB 13,630 per tonne from RMB 13,550 per tonne, the average prices are expected to range between RMB 13,610 per tonne and RMB 13,650 per tonne. The spot discounts are likely to settle at RMB 70 per tonne to RMB 20 per tonne. As the surge has touched upon all the major Chinese markets, the east market (Wuxi and Hangzhou) has recorded a growth of RMB 75 per tonne to stand at RMB 13,620 per tonne. The markets in the south and north have witnessed an increase in ingot price by about RMB 110 per tonne and RMB 30 per tonne to hover at RMB 13,680 per tonne and RMB 13,600 per...
Social inventories of primary aluminium across eight consumption areas in China, including SHFE warrants, stood at 1.755 million tonnes as of Monday March 4, an increase of 11,000 tonnes from Thursday February 28, Shanghai Metals Market data showed. The weekend gain of 11,000 tones is smaller than the increase of 45,000 tonnes in the previous weekend. The chart below indicates the current status of the primary aluminium inventories across China: Inventories in Wuxi, Jiangsu and Shanghai increased 11,000 tonnes and 1,000 tonnes from Monday February 25 to 647,000 tonnes and 313,000 tonnes respectively. Stocks in Nanhai, Guangdong and Gongyi, Henan stood at 367,000 tonnes and 158,000 tonnes as of Monday March 4, up 27,000 tonnes and 1,000 tonnes from Monday February 25. Inventories in...
NICHE Chemical LLC, the specialty products and chemicals division of New Day Aluminum Holdings LLC, has announced the acquisition of Imerys Fused Minerals Hull Ltd. The acquisition will complement the company’s existing fused alumina business in LaBathie, France. The acquired business, located in Hull, England, will be renamed NICHE Fused Magnesia Limited. Magnesia products are used in the electrical, friction, ceramic, automotive and refractory industries. David D'Addario, CEO of New Day, commented, “We are excited at the opportunity to acquire the Hull business, which is consistent with our strategy to further expand our product portfolio and geographical footprint. This business is also an excellent fit for the expansion of our newly-branded NICHE specialty products business while...
An all-aluminium K50 electric sports car will reportedly make a debut in North America during the 2019 New York Auto Show in April. The news came after California-based Mullen Technologies and its Chinese partners confirmed. The companies also said the vehicle would be sold in the United States from 2020. The K50 is a well-proportioned, two-door sports car featured with an all-aluminium body frame and carbon fibre body panels. The total weight of the car is 281 kilograms, of which aluminium construction accounts for 234 kilograms. The power of the car comes from a duo of electric motors, one for each axle. This layout ensures all-wheel drive capability with multiple driving modes. The creators said the combined peak output of the system “could be as high as 375 bhp, with a torque of 428...
Chinese-owned Bosai Minerals Group Guyana Inc. is reportedly investing US$23 million as part of its expansion plan for Linden, Region 10, bauxite operations. The news arrived after Bosai made the announcement on Friday morning, March 1, which also said that this expansion would create additional long-term employment for the residents of the community Per the report, Bosai has already commenced preparatory works for a new number 15 rotary kiln for calcined bauxite production. The new kiln and its auxiliary facilities are worth of US$20 million and expected to produce 170,000 tonnes of refractory A Grade super calcine bauxite per year. According to the mining company, it is also financing a new number 16 drier and its auxiliary facilities worth US$3 million. This project is expected to...
Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau reportedly spoke to the US President Donald Trump on Thursday, February 28, about American tariffs on aluminium and steel. The news came after Trudeau’s office said “The Prime Minister raised the issue of steel and aluminium tariffs and expressed the need for the removal of tariffs,” on Friday, March 1. Ottawa, the capital of Canada, had been strongly objecting to these tariffs imposed on the ground of national securities. Ottawa pressed many times for the removal of tariffs. The US Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said on February 28 that he tried hard to convince Mr. Trump for protecting the US steel industry with tariff rate quotas, instead of plain tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico. Earlier on Sunday, February 24, Transport Minister...
Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI) announced that Yantai Donghai Aluminium Foil Co. Ltd. has become the first company in China to be certified against ASI’s Chain of Custody Standard. Fiona Solomon, Chief Executive Officer at ASI said “Yantai Donghai Aluminium Foil Co. are now the first in China to achieve ASI Certification against both the Performance Standard and Chain of Custody Standard. Dual ASI Certification, encompassing both performance and chain of custody, enables companies to provide independent assurance of responsible production, sourcing and stewardship of aluminium. We greatly appreciate the commitment of Nanshan Aluminium to sustainability through the ASI program and their leadership in China’s aluminium industry.” Based in Shandong province, Yantai Donghai Aluminium...
Shanghai Metals Market found brisk trading in east China on Friday morning, March 1, as lower aluminium prices improved purchasing willingness among traders and downstream consumers. Weekend stockpiling was also an important reason for the improved purchasing and therefore, brisk trading as a result. In Shanghai, spot deals were mostly seen at RMB 13,540 per tonne to RMB 13,550 per tonne, down more than RMB 60 per tonne from Thursday morning. The front-month March aluminium contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange also fell from the previous day. Against the SHFE 1903 contract, spot discounts in Shanghai narrowed from RMB 80 per tonne to RMB 40 per tonne in the first part of the morning session, as futures prices dropped. Spot discounts were seen at RMB 50 per tonne to RMB 40 per tonne...
Aluminium is opening up more avenues for the architects to experiment with design and utility performance. SHoP Architects completed the first tower of the Essex Crossing mega-development located in Manhattan’s Lower East Side, clad in anodized aluminium curtainwall modules. An architectural marvel, the tower has used aluminium intelligently for lighting and aesthetics. Essex Crossing is a sprawling 6- development project master planned by SHoP. In total, the project will cover about two million square feet of development. The podium of 242 Broome is primarily reserved for retail use, with large curtain wall modules and window widths to allow optimum daylight. Just over 500 aluminium-and-glass curtainwall modules are distributed across the building’s elevations for design and convenience....
Kuantan MP Fuziah Salleh reportedly said that bauxite mining activities are unlikely to resume in a month’s time. Explaining further, she said that the mining activities look difficult to restart in next one month time because Pahang government has not yet made standard operating procedure (SOP) clear. "It was discussed in the Cabinet that the moratorium should only be lifted if the SOP was satisfactory. So technically, I do not see how the moratorium can be lifted next month," Fuziah said after visiting SM Chong Hwa here on Friday, March 1. Fuziah further said that environmental impact assessment report is also yet to be submitted by the state government. She added that former minister Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar had earlier proposed the delimitation of bauxite mining hectarage...
Martinrea International Inc. announced its financial results for the year ended December 31, 2018. The company’s consolidated sales stood at $3,662.9 million, down $27.6 million or 0.7% from $3,690.5 million in 2017. Martinrea reported record Adjusted EBITDA of $461.2 million. The company designs, manufactures, and sells metal parts, assemblies and modules, fluid management systems, and aluminium products primarily for the automotive industry in North America, Europe, and internationally. Sales in the Company’s North America operating segment decreased $86.3 million to $2,827.5 million from $2,913.8 million in 2017, due to lower year-over-year production volumes on certain light-vehicle platforms. Rob Wildeboer, Executive Chairman, said: “In 2018, not only did we have a record year in...
The latest data from US Geological Survey indicates that the total aluminium supply in the United States (Primary production, secondary recovery, and imports for consumption) stood at an estimated 9.3 million tonnes through November 2018, down 4% over the same period of 2017, where the supply stood at 9.7 million tonnes. Out of the total supply of aluminium, the US imported about 5.1 million tonnes of aluminium in the period from January to November 2018. Export (excluding scrap) during the same period stood at 1.23 million tonne. Apparent consumption (total supply minus export) during the first 11 months of 2018 stood at about 8.47 million tonne. When we look at the export statistics year over year, we see that the export of crude and alloyed aluminium and semi-finished aluminium stood...
