ABB has secured two orders from China’s Southwest Aluminum to supply integrated automation and digital technologies for two six-high aluminium cold rolling mills, supporting the manufacturer’s wide-strip production expansion and upgrade. The projects involve a 2,500 mm two-stand mill and a 3,000 mm single-stand mill, with both lines expected to be fully commissioned and operational by the end of 2027. Chongqing-based Southwest Aluminum is a subsidiary of the Aluminum Corporation of China (Chinalco). The orders build on the longstanding cooperation between ABB and the aluminium producer, with the latest projects focusing on process stability, control precision and production performance. Explore insights and forecasts for the aluminium flat rolled products (FRP) market from our...
India-based PG Foils Limited plans to establish a downstream aluminium manufacturing facility in Bahrain, focusing on electric vehicle (EV) battery foil and pharmaceutical foil production. The proposed investment is expected to expand the kingdom’s aluminium downstream capabilities and strengthen its manufacturing base. Bahrain’s Ministry of Industry and Commerce signed a letter of intent with PG Foils for the project. The agreement was signed by Industry and Commerce Minister Abdullah bin Adel Fakhro and PG Foils Joint Managing Director Sahil Shah during the fourth edition of the Gateway Gulf expo, which opened on November 1 in Manama. Explore: The most comprehensive and forward-looking industry-focused report – Aluminum Foil Market Report Forecast Till 2035 Hosted by the Bahrain...
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In November, the US exports of aluminium semi-finished products (plates, sheets, bars, etc.) came in at 79,200 tonnes, down 2.22 per cent from 81,000 in November 2017.On a month on month comparison, the volume decreased 8.55 per cent or 7,400 tonnes from the October export volume of 86,600 tonnes, according to the latest Mineral Industry Survey report from US Geological Survey. {newsStudioGallery} In the first eleven months of 2018, aluminium semi-finished products export stood at 962,000 tonnes, as compared to 957,000 tonnes in the first eleven months of 2017. This marks an increase of 5000 tonnes or 0.52 per cent. Exports to Canada stood at 28,500 tonnes in November 2018, down 14 per cent year-on-year and 10.94 per cent month-on-month. During January-November, the volume stood at...
According to Shanghai Metals Market, 6063 aluminium billet stocks across five major consumption areas in China increased this week with varying consumptions in markets. Over the week ended on March 7, inventories gained 4,300 tonnes of aluminium billet to stand at 151,000 tonnes. Last week, on February 28, the billet stocks were at 146,700 tonnes. While billet stocks in Foshan, Guangdong were at 82,500 tonnes last week, they increased 6,100 tonnes week-on-week to 88,600 tonnes. In Huzhou, Zhejiang, the inventories grew from 6,000 tonnes to 10,000 tonnes, as of today. But in Wuxi, Jiangsu and in Nanchang, Jiangxi, the stocks plunged from 27,400 tonnes to 25,000 tonnes and from 10,800 tonnes to 5,400 tonnes, respectively. In the background of this marginal rise in billet inventory, the...
China exported 90,200 tonnes of aluminium alloy wheels in January 2019, an increase of 10.95 per cent from a year earlier, according to the latest customs data. Exports of aluminium alloy wheels in January increased 11.63 per cent from 80,800 tonnes in December 2018.This compared to a year-on-year increase of 2.5% in December. The value of exports increased 5.12 per cent year on year to US$411 million. Aluminium alloy wheels exports started to climb in August 2018 as the US announced a 10% tariff on Chinese aluminium alloy wheels from September, as reported by Shanghai Metals Market. The US, the major importer of China’s aluminium alloy wheels, accounted for around half of the country’s exports. China’s exports of aluminium alloy wheels came in at 994,100 tonnes in 2018.The value of...
According to Shanghai Metals Market, high prices of spot aluminium in the eastern and southern Chinese markets prompted reluctant aluminium purchases among downstream consumers this morning. Spot deals were mostly seen at RMB 13,680 per tonne to RMB 13,700 per tonne in Shanghai, barely changed from the previous morning. The front-month SHFE aluminium contract also traded range-bound in morning trade today. Transactions in Wuxi and Hangzhou were also heard at RMB 13,680 per tonne to RMB 13,700 per tonne. Against the SHFE 1903 contract, spot discounts in Shanghai came in at RMB 30 per tonne to RMB 10 per tonne, narrower than RMB 40 per tonne to RMB 20 per tonne on Tuesday morning. The Aluminium Corporation of China (Chalco) bought over 5,000 tonnes of spot aluminium in the eastern markets...
India Day was celebrated at the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC 2019) in Toronto—the world’s leading mineral exploration and mining convention, on 5th March 2019. On the occasion, Nalco CMD Tapan Kumar Chand invited global investors, technology suppliers and equipment manufacturers to its Angul Aluminium Park (AAI) and highlighted the world class facilities offered by AAI. Tapan Kumar Chand also delivered a presentation on Indian Aluminium Industry at the convention. He spoke on overseas acquisition, exploration and processing of strategic minerals through Khanij Bidesh India Ltd, a joint venture company of Nalco, Hindustan Copper Ltd and Mineral Exploration Corporation Limited. Hinting that the company’s Lithium Ion battery plant may come up in Odisha, he said...
According to the data from China Customs released over the weekend, the country’s exports of aluminium sheet, plates and strips came in at 246,000 tonnes in January, down 1.8 per cent from 250,000 in December, but up 20 per cent from 205,000 tonnes year-on-year. This decline in China’s export volume in the said month is attributable to narrowed arbitrage window on yuan appreciation and higher SHFE/LME aluminium price ratio. {newsStudioGallery} However, even though the export grew in January year-on-year, it was 0.9 percentage point slower compared with the earlier month (December 2018). The yuan rebounded about 6.7 versus the US dollar for much of January. For the same month, the ratio of the most active aluminium contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange to the three-month aluminium on...
Hufschmied presented their range of machining tools designed especially for aluminium machining at Intec in February 2019. These tools deliver good surface qualities when machining aluminium honeycombs, plates, and profiles with help of their specially adapted cutting edge geometries. Hufschmied’s large selection of tools helps in roughing and finishing without the need to change tools in a significantly shorter time. Hufschmied also offers wear-resistant welding pins for friction stir welding of aluminium and aluminium alloys with minimum effort. In cooperation with the erosion experts from Exeron GmbH, Hufschmied also used the Intec for the presentation of the new Graftor tool series, which, thanks to its diamond coating, features a low cutting pressure. The blades of the cutting tools...
According to the latest report from Aluminum Association, aluminium net shipments (including exports) by domestic U.S. and Canadian facilities totalled an estimated 982,481 tonnes during January 2019, an increase of 4.3 per cent over the January 2018 total of 941,657 tonnes. Shipments of aluminium semi-finished products rose 3.2 per cent over the previous year to 636,843 tonnes. Shipments of aluminium ingot for castings, exports and destructive uses advanced 6.5 per cent year-over-year, totalling 345,637 tonnes. For the full year 2018, preliminary producer shipments of aluminium totalled an estimated 11.1 million tonne, an increase of 3.5 per cent over the 2017 total of 10.7 million tonnes. January inventory levels totalled an estimated 1.6 million pounds, an increase of 3.2 per cent over...
The global aluminium powder and flakes market in terms of value is estimated to grow to US$1060 million by 2024 from US$910 million in 2019, growing at a CAGR of 2.5 per cent. The key players in the industry, such as Australia, are expected to cash on the opportunities that abound the market during this period. Being one of the world’s leading aluminium producing countries, Australia is expected to be one of the prime sourcing epicentres. {newsStudioGallery} According to the available data, Australia in 2019 is expected to export around 13,112 tonnes of aluminium powder and flakes, up 6 per cent from 2018. Australia’s aluminium powder and flakes exports have been growing year over year since 2016. In 2017, the country had exported approximately 10,486 tonnes, up 46 per cent from 7,175...
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....
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...
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...
A press release from the AMAG Austria Metall AG says that the Group's total shipments in 2018 rose to a record of 424,600 tonnes in comparison to 421,700 tonnes in 2017 driven by rising demand for aluminium products combined and ramp-up of the new plants in Ranshofen. Helmut Wieser, CEO of AMAG: "We implemented our two site expansion projects within budget and on schedule, and we are also making good progress in the demanding ramp-up of our new facilities. In 2018, we achieved important qualifications in the packaging, aircraft and automotive industries. This created the basis for further growth in the coming years." Revenue was up by around 6 % to EUR 1,101.6 million compared to EUR 1,036.2 million in 2017 driven by higher shipment volumes and the higher average aluminium price. The...
According to Shanghai Metals Market, stocks of 6063 aluminium billet across five major consumption areas further extended decline in China. SMM research found that after plunging over the week, billet stocks came in at 146,700 tonnes today, on February 28. Last week, on February 21, the inventories were at 164,500 tonnes; thus, today they dropped by 17,800 tonnes or 11 per cent. The reason for this week-on-week decline of aluminium billet stocks could be the fewer arrivals of cargoes at warehouses. As many downstream producers were on holiday for the Chinese New Year, the domestic production perhaps had gone down, and that prompted the lower supplies of billets to warehouses. The above chart represents that aluminium billet stocks in Foshan Guangdong stood at 82,500 tonnes today, after...
Press Metal Aluminium Holdings Berhad reported net profit of RM156.41 million in Q4 2018, up 4% from RM150.19 million in Q4 2017.For the full year of 2018, net profit rose 6.2% to RM629.98 million compared with RM593.38 million in the previous year. Quarterly revenue increased from RM2.13 billion in Q4 2017 to RM2.25 billion in Q4 2018, representing an increase of RM120.55 million or 5.67%. This was mainly due to the completion of Leader Universal Aluminium Sdn. Bhd. (which has subsequently changed its name to Press Metal Aluminium Rods Sdn. Bhd. or “PMAR”) acquisition on 30 March 2018. PMAR’s revenue has since been consolidated into the Group revenue thereafter, it said. For the full year of 2018, revenue increased by RM982.39 million or 12% to RM9.16 billion from RM8.18 billion in 2017....
In a positive development, President Trump said he would extend a deadline to impose tariffs on more Chinese goods beyond this week. This indicated "substantial progress" in the latest round of trade talks that ended on Sunday in Washington. “The U.S. has made substantial progress in our trade talks with China on important structural issues including intellectual property protection, technology transfer, agriculture, services, currency, and many other issues,” Trump said in a Twitter posting late Sunday. “As a result of these very productive talks, I will be delaying the U.S. increase in tariffs now scheduled for March 1,” he added. Trump also indicated anther meeting with and China President Xi Jinping to conclude an agreement. The U.S. Trade Representative’s office is expected to issue...
Aluminium Stewardship Initiative announced that Slim Aluminium S.p.A. has become a new Production & Transformation member of the ASI. Slim Aluminium S.p.A, located in Cisterna di Latina, near Rome,is a vertically integrated plant with cast house, rolling mills and finishing lines, manufacturing flat rolled aluminium products. The facility has a maximum capacity of approximately 92,000 tons per year. “The objectives and strategic plan of “Aluminium Stewardship Initiative” perfectly fits with our mission and values. Therefore we are glad to join this association with the aim to receive support and offer our contribution as we believe that as part of a global group we can be stronger in spreading the sustainability of aluminium in all its uses and applications along its whole lifecycle,”...
Shanghai Metals Market found improved spot aluminium buying interest among downstream consumers in south China yesterday, February 26, compared with the previous week. With this, spot aluminium deals among traders accounted for the majority of trading activities in the southern markets. The front-month SHFE March contract rose from last Friday, after the US President Donald Trump announced a postponement of a March 1 decline for additional tariffs on Chinese goods. In Shanghai and Wuxi, spot deals mostly occurred at RMB 13,580 per tonne to RMB 13,590 per tonne while that in Hangzhou at RMB 13,570 per tonne to RMB 13,590 per tonne, SMM research found. Spot discounts in Shanghai stood at RMB 80 per tonne to RMB 70 per tonne against the SHFE 1903 contract, barely changed from Friday morning....
