AlCircle News Edited By "Debanjali Sengupta"
Debanjali Sengupta is a passionate content writer with 10 years of experience in Business writing, Web Content writing, Blogging, Editing and Research. She is responsible for generating and editing content for AlCircle Newsletter and other online and offline content for enhancing the brand value and its visibility among global users.
LME aluminium continued to increase on low opening stocks and dollar price; SHFE aluminium edged down
The US dollar edged lower against a basket its rivals on Monday, holding near a one-month high after last Friday’s jump on data that confirmed the US economy is holding up well. Moves were slight and volumes thin as Lunar New Year approaches in Asia and with US markets closed for Martin Luther King day on Monday. Three-month LME aluminium advanced 0.64 per cent on Monday to end at US$ 1,817 per tonne, its highest close in two weeks. It is expected to trade between US$1,790-1,825 per tonne today. LME aluminium cash (bid) price, on January 20, inched up to US$ 1806.00 per tonne from US$ 1795.5 per tonne on January 17, while LME official settlement price increased to US$ 1807.00 per tonne from US$ 1796 per tonne. 3-months bid price rose to US$ 1813.00 per tonne and 3-months offer price US$...
Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba) receives Certification against ASI Performance Standard
Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba) has reportedly secured ASI Performance Certification for responsible production, sourcing, and stewardship of aluminium while remaining committed towards environmental, social, and governance performance. The ASI certification covers the production and marketing of primary aluminium, alumina, calcination of petroleum coke, water desalination, anode manufacturing, smelting, casting, and captive power generation. Alba’s audit for ASI Certification covered the Alba Calciner and Alba Smelter and was carried out by DNV GL. The aluminium company in 2019 became the world’s largest smelter outside of China for its Line 6 expansion project. Fiona Solomon, Chief Executive Officer at ASI said “Sincere congratulations to Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba) on achieving ASI...
Why buy "Aluminium Industry Recap 2019: A Look Back at the Global Aluminium Value Chain" report?
AlCircle’s “Aluminium Industry Recap 2019” brings to you an opportunity to look back at the key developments in the year gone by. Although the year 2019 was an aftermath of trade wars, restrictive tariffs, sanctions, capacity cuts and price volatility that impacted the entire aluminium value chain, a few key expansions and developments of new projects marked the year eventful. To start with, EGA’s first bauxite project in Guinea, Rio Tinto’s commissioning of Amrun bauxite mine and, the beginning of mining and screening operations at Australian Bauxite Limited’s Bald Hill mine was some of the notable developments in the upstream sector, resulting in an increase in bauxite production all over the globe. But due to the surplus production, the global price of the ore remained sluggish, which...
JNARDDC develops a low-cost process for the production of high-purity alumina
According to a recent report, Jawaharlal Nehru Aluminium Research Development and Design Centre (JNARDDC), Nagpur has invented a low-cost process of producing 3N purity alumina (99.9%) at lab scale. The focus is on preparing the alpha phase of 3N pure nano-alumina at lowermost possible temperature. High purity nano-alumina finds extensive applications in translucent tubes for high-pressure sodium lamps, single crystal materials, high-strength ceramic tools and abrasives for magnetic tape, among others. <iframe width="550" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZBYZ6BQmf0M" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe> Sponsored by Department of Science and Technology (DST) New Delhi, the project found...
Primary aluminium inventories record speedy growth on Monday, resulting in sharp A00 aluminium ingot price decline
Aluminium inventories in China grew over the weekend by 21,000 tonnes, in contrast to 20,000 tonnes in the whole last week ended on January 16. Concentrated arrivals of stocks in some regions and weakening consumption as the world gears up for the Lunar New Year holidays were the two important factors for the faster growth as of today, found Shanghai Metals Market. SMM data showed the inventories increased to 651,000 tonnes across eight major consumption areas in China, including SHFE warrants as of Monday, January 20. In Wuxi, Nanhai, Hangzhou, and Tianjin, the inventories have increased by 12,000 tonnes, 7,000 tonnes, 6,000 tonnes, 1,000 tonnes over the weekend to stand at 213,000 tonnes, 139,000 tonnes, 72,000, and 58,000 tonnes respectively. In Shanghai, Chongqing, and Gongyi,...
Alcoa to continue operating its aluminium smelter in Victoria, at least till mid-2021
Alcoa will reportedly continue operating its aluminium smelter in Victoria, despite a significant net global loss last year. According to the report, while Alcoa reported a $1.12 billion net global loss in 2019, the smelter received $200 million in Australian government subsidies as part of a four-year packaging ending in 2021. President Roy Harvey reasoned the loss saying “Australia has one of the highest energy price markets on the planet.” Alcoa is its Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2019 Results said that it expects some benefits from the lower costs of raw materials in 2020, but at the same time presumes the benefits to be offset by “higher energy costs, lower rolled products shipments, and unfavourable price and mix.” Alcoa recently sold its waste treatment facility in Gum Springs,...
LME aluminium recorded relentless hikes this week on incessant stock decline; SHFE aluminium showed a steady trend
After a little ease last week, on Friday, January 10, on the news of the Trump administration imposing fresh sanctions on Iran and weaker-than-expected US jobs data, the US dollar on Monday, January 13, began the week steadily and continued to remain so the next day. However, on Wednesday and Thursday, January 15 and 16, it fell to a one-week low, as the US and China signed a deal to roll back some tariffs. Three-month LME aluminium began the week retreating to its lowest in more than a week at US$ 1,788.5 per tonne. LME aluminium gave back all the gains from the previous two days, as was expected to trade between US$ 1,780 per tonne and US$ 1,810/ per tonne on January 14. On January 15, LME aluminium closed higher at US$1,778.5 per tonne, while three-month LME aluminium ended at US$1,800...
China’s alumina production in 2019 down by 2.47% YoY due to capacity cut and output suspension
According to Shanghai Metals Market survey, China in December 2019 produced 5.87 million tonnes of alumina, with metallurgical-grade materials accounting for 5.62 million tonnes. With this, the country’s total alumina production in 2019 came in at 70.42 million tonnes, down 2.47 per cent from the year earlier. Last month, the production of metallurgical-grade alumina averaged 181,000 tonnes per day, down 9.01 per cent year on year and 0.26 per cent month on month as Luoyang Wanji cuts its annual operation capacity to 800,000 tonnes. Also, the alumina refineries that reduced or suspended output in November due to tight bauxite supply and environmental woes did not recover in December, resulting in weaker production. Jingxi Tiangui project, on the other hand, fails to see production ramp up...
China recorded its first aluminium production fall in 10 years in 2019
According to the National Bureau of Statistics, China’s annual aluminium production fell in 2019 for the first time in a decade. 35.04 million tonnes were the total aluminium production in China in 2019, down 0.9 per cent from record levels a year earlier, showed the NBS data. Outage at some major Chinese smelters since August and close down of some of the lines at China Hongqiao Group due to flooding in Shandong province were some of the reasons behind the annual aluminium output decline. The downfall in production also indicates China’s economic slowdown. China’s annual aluminium consumption was also set to fall for the first time in 30 years in 2019, showed the research data of Antaike. In December 2019, however, the aluminium output in China stood up month-on-month by 4.9 per cent to...
Germany’s aluminium cans export to drop 24% in 2020, followed after sporadic business activities in the industry in 2019
The German aluminium industry federation Gesamtverband der Aluminiumindustrie (GDA) observed a mixed bag of business activity development in the German aluminium industry, primarily attributing to the economic downturn. In the first half of 2019, the country’s production of metal powder, foil, and thin strip fell by 3.7 per cent and 5.1 per cent, respectively, while the output of tube, aerosol, and other cans dropped even more sharply by 9 per cent. Amidst this, the international trade data has predicted the aluminium cans export from Germany to likely dip in 2020 from 113,790 tonnes in 2019 to 86,175 tonnes, down 24 per cent. In 2018, the export volume was 82,735 tonnes meaning a rise of 37.53 per cent in 2019, whereas, in 2017, the export was 98247 tonnes indicating a downfall of 16 per...
LME aluminium soared on low opening stock and plunged US dollar; SHFE rallied
The US dollar rallied from one-week lows against a basket its rivals on Thursday, January 16, as investors digested solid data on the US economy. Three-month LME aluminium climbed to a one-week high of US$ 1,818 per tonne on Thursday, before it finished the trading day 0.5 per cent firmer at US$ 1,809 per tonne. A significant increase in SHFE aluminium helped lift LME aluminium, but a stronger US dollar is likely to keep gains in LME aluminium in check. LME aluminium is expected to hover at US$ 1,790-1,820 per tonne today. LME aluminium cash (bid) price, on January 16, soared to US$ 1793.50 per tonne from US$1778 per tonne on January 15, while LME official settlement price jumped to US$ 1794 per tonne from US$ 1778.5 per tonne. 3-months bid price rose to US$ 1813 per tonne and 3-months...
6063 aluminium billets inventories in China grow for the second consecutive week
According to Shanghai Metals Market, the stocks of 6063 aluminium billets across five major consumption areas in China rose for the second consecutive week by 13,200 tonnes. From 53,200 tonnes on last Thursday, January 9, the aluminium billets inventories, as of today, January 16, have come in at 66,400 tonnes. In Foshan, the billets inventories are hovering at 30,100 tonnes after rising by 3,700 tonnes over the week, while in Wuxi, Changzhou, and Huzhou, the inventories have come in at 12,800 tonnes, 5,800 tonnes, and 16,000 tonnes after growing by 2,200 tonnes, 1,500 tonnes, and 7,000 tonnes, respectively. However, in Nanchang, the inventories have dropped from the last week to 1,700 tonnes. On the extended rise in billets inventories, the prices of aluminium alloys have declined today,...
South32’s alumina production in Q2 FY20 rose 1%, while aluminium output remained flat
South32, on Thursday, January 15, announced a quarter-on-quarter rise of 1 per cent in its alumina production for the second quarter ended on December 31, 2019. From 1.30 million tonnes in the first quarter, the company’s alumina output rose to 1.32 million tonnes in the second quarter. But during the same period last year, South32 had produced 1.38 million tonnes of the ore, meaning a year-on-year drop of 4 per cent in Q2 FY20. However, the total production in the first half of FY20 stood higher by 3.65 per cent amounting to 2.63 million tonnes, compared with 2.54 million tonnes in H1FY19. This growth, according to South32, is attributed to record year-to-date production at Brazil Alumina and also higher rates of calciner availability at Worsley Alumina. Graham Kerr, South32 CEO said,...
US-China “Phase One” Trade Agreement signed; Aluminium Association demands structural subsidies in Phase Two
On Wednesday, January 15, the US President Donald Trump signed a partial trade deal with China aiming to resolve prevailing American concerns about Chinese trade abuses. According to a text released by the White House, the deal included several steps to strike out some practices, such as Intellectual property theft and forced technology transfers in exchange for Chinese market access, meaning the deal erased the practices that irked the US economy and trade structure. Here are some of the deal’s core pieces: China needs to submit an “Action Plan to strengthen intellectual property protection” within 30 days of the agreement taking effect. The plan should include “measures that China will take to implement its obligations” and “the date by which each measure will go into effect.” No force...
A00 aluminium ingot price grows by RMB110/t after three back-to-back declines; Aluminium alloys prices drop
According to Shanghai Metals Market, the A00 aluminium ingot price has recorded a significant rise of RMB 110 per tonne to RMB 14,310 per tonne on Thursday, January 16, after three consecutive drops from RMB 14,530 per tonne to RMB 14,200 per tonne. Since the beginning of the month, the A00 aluminium ingot price showed several downfalls on the growth of domestic stocks. But on monthly basis, the price stands higher by RMB 340 per tonne, as of today, January 16. The average prices today are expected to range between RMB 14,290 per tonne and RMB 14,330 per tonne, with spot contract to be traded a premium price of RMB 150 per tonne to RMB 190 per tonne. Among all the major cities, Wuxi has seen the highest price growth of RMB 150 per tonne to stand at RMB 14300 per tonne, followed by Gongyi...
Nalco cuts aluminium ingots prices by nearly 2% after three hikes in a row
National Aluminium Company Limited, the Navratna CPSE under Ministry of Mines, has reportedly cut its aluminium ingots prices by nearly 2 per cent, after hiking them three times in a row. The prices are now ranging between INR 150,350 per tonne and RMB 153,850 per tonne, compared to INR 152,850 – 156,350 per tonne after being hiked by 2 per cent. <iframe width="550" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/oYtvY2wWiAs" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe> As considered most of the aluminium producers link their products prices to the three-month futures of aluminium on London Metal Exchange, which had been down nearly 2% so far this month, NALCO has also cut its ingot prices by almost 2 per cent....
Aleris purchase deal may delay by three months: Source says
According to a recent report, Novelis is in talks to extend the closure of its planned acquisition of US aluminium products maker Aleris Corporation by three months, as securing regulatory approvals delayed. In November 2019, a report stated that the company was expecting to close the purchase deal by January 21, 2020. Although China has cleared the deal, authorities in the US are still critically examining it. In September last year, the US Justice Department had filed a lawsuit as well, citing that this acquisition may create a monopoly in the North American market for rolled aluminium sheet for automotive applications. A Moody’s note on the 13 th of January also sounded pessimistic about the closure of the deal on scheduled date. “The EU has advised it needs additional time to review...
Both Hindalco and Vedanta cut aluminium prices by more than 1 per cent
Hindalco, with effect from Saturday, January 11, has reduced the prices of its aluminium ingots, billets, and wire rods by more than 1%, marking the second consecutive price cut in a week. While the aluminium ingot price has been reduced by 1.2 per cent from INR 145,500 per tonne on January 9 to INR 143,750 per tonne on January 11, the price of the aluminium billet is cut by 1.15 per cent from INR 152,100 per tonne to INR 150,350 per tonne. The aluminium wire rod price is now standing at INR 154,350 per tonne after being cut by over 1 per cent from INR 156,100 per tonne. <iframe width="550" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Fna0mGbz_Tk" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe> Vedanta Limited...
