South32 expects the sale of its aluminium value chain assets to Alcoa to be completed in the six months ending June 2027. The proposed transaction covers its aluminium operations and related bauxite and alumina assets in South Africa, Australia and Brazil. The sale follows a binding conditional agreement signed by the two companies, under which Alcoa agreed to acquire the assets for up to USD 5.6 billion . The assets include South32's Hillside Aluminium smelter and the idled Bayside smelter in South Africa, its interests in the Boddington bauxite mine and Worsley alumina refinery in Australia, and the Mineração Rio do Norte bauxite mine and Alumar alumina refinery and aluminium smelter in Brazil. Explore the production, demand and consumption forecasts of bauxite and alumina in our...
LME aluminium cash prices recorded an increase on November 5, 2026, with the cash offer price rising by 0.80 per cent day on day to USD 3,160 per tonne from USD 3,135 per tonne on November 4. On November 5, the LME aluminium cash bid price stood at USD 3,158 per tonne, up by 0.75 per cent from USD 3,134.5 per tonne recorded on November 4. The cash offer price increased by USD 25 per tonne. Similarly, LME aluminium 3-month prices moved higher. The 3-month bid price rose by 0.78 per cent to USD 3,097 per tonne on November 5 from USD 3,073 per tonne on November 4. The 3-month offer price increased by 0.76 per cent to USD 3,097.5 per tonne from USD 3,074 per tonne. For December 27 contracts, the bid price advanced by 0.33 per cent to USD 2,997 per tonne on November 5 from USD 2,987 per tonne...
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UC RUSAL has announced the investment of USD 23.7 million to launch a new calciner at the Irkutsk Aluminium Smelter. Decision was taken in 2015 to upgrade calciner #2 at IrkAZ in order to supply calcined coke to the Sayanogorsk Aluminium Smelter to make pre-baked anodes. Production capacity of the calciner was 72 ktpa. RUSAL has calcination capacity in IrkAZ as well as the Bratsk and Krasnoyarsk Aluminium Smelters. BrAZ and KrAZ produced about 800 kt of calcined coke in 2016 fulfilling about 61% of the total demand of RUSAL's aluminium smelters. After the launch of calciner #2 at IrkAZ, 71% of the Rusal’s calcinatory demand will be meted out in-house. “By increasing our in-house capacity for calcined coke production, RUSAL will be able to gradually abandon the supplies from third parties...
According to an SMM report, traders in both East and South China markets actively sourced metals yesterday due to the rally in SHFE aluminium prices for two consecutive days. The price rise has fuelled their optimism which is expected to continue in the near term. A00 ingot prices in Guangdong traded within a range of RMB 16,280-16,300/tonne, versus RMB16, 200-16,240 /tonne in Shanghai. According to SMM statistics, average prices for A00 aluminium ingot in China stood at RMB 15,809/t in the week ending Aug 18 registering a growth of 2.25% fromlast week’s average. The movements in benchmark aluminium price at Shanghai Metal Exchange (SME) in August are shown in the graph below (Unit: US$/t): Downstream producers, by contrast, were reluctant to buy at current high prices as production gets...
On Thursday, August 17, Aluminum Corp of China Limited (Chalco) announced the results for the first half of 2017. The company’s profit jumped more than tenfold year-on-year in H1 2017. China’s leading producer of primary aluminium and alumina reported net income of 751.3 million yuan ($112.57 million) in the first six months of 2017, from 67.9 million yuan a year earlier. The company posted 91.3 billion yuan in revenue in the first half of this year, an increase of 83 per cent year-on-year from 49.9 billion yuan a year earlier. Prices of LME aluminium reached the highest on Thursday on expectations that the metal industry will curtail supply in China. Chalco's Hong Kong shares increased around 68 percent from January to August, from roughly 35 percent gain for the Hang Seng index,...
LME aluminium continues its upward trend with another leap from US$2,075 per tonne on Wednesday August 16 to close at US$2,095.50 per tonne on Thursday, August 17. As reported by Reuters, LME aluminium may settle into a range of US$2,081- 2,089 per tonne as it has stabilized around a support at US$2,068/t. SMM predicts LME aluminium will range within US$2,055-2,075/t today and test support at the 5-day moving average. Traders are flooding into aluminium market on growing bullishness keeping prices high. As on August 17, LME official cash buyer aluminium price (Bid Price) stands at US$2,094.50 per tonne, cash seller & settlement aluminium price (Offer price) is US$2,095.50 per tonne, 3M Bid Price is US$2,085 per tonne, 3M Offer Price is US$2,086 per tonne, Dec1 Bid Price is US$2,123 per...
On Tuesday August 15, U.S. Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer said that cheap aluminium and steel imports from China and other countries are impacting Alcoa and other domestic aluminium and steel companies. “There are top notch manufactures like Alcoa and Nucor ready to provide high-quality aluminum and steel to businesses in and around the country, but China’s overproduction has resulted in a substantial threat to Upstate New York’s metal industry by making it almost impossible for companies that play by the rules to compete,” said Sen. He has urged officials to put pressure to China against subsidies and use U.S. trade laws to eliminate “unfair competition” and maintain a level playing field. “The aluminum and steel we use to build our planes, trains and bridges should be proudly...
Press Metal Aluminium Holdings Bhd , the leading aluminium producer in Southeast Asia, announced its net profit increased 2.8 per cent to RM150.17 million in second quarter ended June 30, 2017 from RM146.07 million a year ago driven by higher revenue. The company’s revenue for the quarter ended June 30, 2017 jumped 31 per cent to RM2.08 billion from RM1.59 billion a year ago. The increase was mainly due to the additional production output generated by its Samalaju Phase 2 smelting plant and higher metal price, it said in a filing with Bursa Malaysia. For the first half of the year , the company achieved record net profit of RM298.22 million, an increase of 23.9 per cent from RM240.63 million a year ago. Revenue soared 42.6% to RM4.1 billion from RM2.88 billion in the first half of 2016....
The uptrend in LME aluminium is continuing. The light metal shone bright sharing the sheen on other base metals and closed at US$2,075 per tonne on Wednesday, August 16, rising from its earlier close of US$2,056 per tonne on Tuesday, August 15. Shanghai Metals Market forecast says LME aluminium will keep hovering at highs of US$ 2,075-2,100 per tonne on Thursday, August 17. Reuters’ technical analysis suggests that LME aluminium may retest a resistance at US$2,103 per tonne in the near term, breaking above which may lead the metal contract to the next resistance level at US$2,125 per tonne. As on August 15, LME official cash buyer aluminium price (Bid Price) stands at US$2,074.50 per tonne, cash seller & settlement aluminium price (Offer price) is US$2,075 per tonne, 3M Bid Price is...
With the LME nearby spreads in backwardation during trading hours in London on Monday, August 14, the seller-buyer gap in Japan’s aluminium import market widened yesterday, reported market sources. August 15 was the deadline for declaring the shipping September cargoes and there were few buyers who were seeking spot supplies. Two international traders said they had information about a seller making offers at US$70-$75 per tonne CIF Japan. The seller could be a trading house with aluminium stocks. Cash-August spread was US$4 per tonne in backwardation during Asian trading hours Tuesday, compared to flat Monday. Cash-September was US$15 per tonne in backwardation Tuesday, widening from a US$4 per tonne backwardation Monday, reported Hellenic Shipping News. Meanwhile, a producer said his...
Oman's Sohar Aluminium yesterday announced that the company was assessing to resume the production as soon as possible after the interruption at its smelters, according to the news published by Reuters. On August 4, Sohar Aluminium informed about an accident at its plant in Sohar which interrupted normal operations and resulted in no injuries. The accident halted production for six-and-a-half hours. According to the company statement, the accident will have no long-term implications on the operations of Sohar Aluminium. Chief Executive Said Al Masoudi said in a statement, "The company has put together a team of industry experts to assess how quickly metal production can be restarted and a return to full production levels be restored as early as possible." Sohar Aluminium is jointly owned...
The fourth round of environmental inspections in China has started in 31 provinces and metal producers in the regions covered by the scan have been required to shut down for environmental reasons. Aluminium producers in many regions of Zhejiang have closed for environmental check. An SMM report says environmental protection tax will take effect in China from January 1. Three departments have recently issued a notice recently regarding implementation of environmental protection tax. Though optimistic speculations over supply side reform and production cut policy on environmental checks have sent LME and SHFE aluminium prices to new highs; SMM projects that the market would still be affected by poor market fundamentals. China’s annualized operational aluminium capacity stood at 36.74...
LME aluminium after testing an upper-end support at US$2,046 per tonne surged to cross the US$2,050 per tonne mark and closed at US$2,056 per tonne on Tuesday, August 15. The light metal rose by 1.28 per cent from its earlier close at US$2,030 per tonne on August 14. According to Shanghai Metals Market forecast, LME aluminium will move widely in the near term. The contract will test support at the five-day moving average and range at US$2,035-2,055 per tonne on Wednesday, August 15. Reuters’ technical analysis suggests that aluminium prices at LME may rise up to levels last seen in September 2014 if they manage to break above US$2,078.75 per tonne. As on August 15, LME official cash buyer aluminium price (Bid Price) stands at US$2,055 per tonne, cash seller & settlement aluminium price...
LME aluminium gave up some its recent gains and dipped slightly as the dollar bounced back and the market started digesting the news of Chinese aluminium capacity cuts. The light metal closed at US$2,030 per tonne on Monday, August 14, down from its earlier close of US$2,040.50 per tonne last Friday, August 11. According to Shanghai Metals Market forecast, LME aluminium will move around the five-day moving average and range at US$2,015-2,035 per tonne on Tuesday, August 15. Reuters’ technical analysis suggests that LME aluminium may retest a support at US$2,021 per tonne, as it temporarily peaked around the top-end resistance at US$2,046 per tonne. As on August 14, LME official cash buyer aluminium price (Bid Price) stands at US$2,029.50 per tonne, cash seller & settlement aluminium price...
RUSAL, the leading global aluminium producer has announced the commissioning of a complex of furnaces for the hardening of wire rods at the Kandalaksha Aluminium Smelter for pilot production. The total level of investment into the project was USD 5.6 mln. The project, launched in March 2016, will enable the production of 6800 tonnes of wire rods from the 6101-T4 alloy per year, whilst also expanding the client base and increasing the competitiveness of RUSAL’s products. Consumers of the KAZ hardened wire rods are both domestic and foreign manufacturers of cable products. The new complex is equipped with four state-of-the-art convection furnaces for hardening, a loading and unloading table, a transborder and two drying chambers. The special feature of the complex is that the rods will be...
LME aluminium prices are on a solid upward track. Although technical analysis by major global research firms indicate at a possible correction which might result in trend reversal, the higher prices, as of now, are turning out to be real boon for the Indian aluminium producers. Vedanta is expected to post a whopping 162 per cent increase in its Q1 profit; Hindalco’s standalone profit increased 28 per cent; and Nalco’s production was up by 6.5 per cent year-over-year. Higher metal prices signify improved realization. Even though cost plays critical in deciding a company’s profitability, it definitely helps in improving the topline. Hindalco Industries had flagged rising costs in their aluminium business; but thanks to the rising global aluminium prices, the company’s revenue increased by...
The world’s largest aluminium producer China Hongqiao confirmed Monday, August 14 that it had closed 2.68 million tonnes of smelting capacity after Shandong Government ordered it to do so in an attempt to curb illegal capacity. The aluminium capacity closed by Hongqiao was spread over five projects. Neither Hongqiao nor any of its subsidiaries was charged a penalty by the authorities, Shandong Weiqiao Aluminum & Electricity said in a disclosure made to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange. Shandong Hongqiao is the sole shareholder of Shandong Weiqiao, and all the capacities closed are the newly added ones by these two companies and their subsidiaries. Presently, Hongqiao has a total aluminium capacity of 6.46 million tonnes per annum, which remains unaffected by the recent closures. As per August...
LME aluminium is trending high. With the Chinese supply-side scenario looking a bit precarious and the US dollar turning broadly lower against major currencies on Friday, August 11, the light metal is expected to climb higher. LME aluminium rose from its earlier close of US$2,024 per tonne on August 10, to settle at US$2,040 per tonne on Friday, August 11. According to Shanghai Metals Market forecast, LME aluminium will move at highs of US$2,035-2,050 per tonne Monday, August 14. Reuters’ technical analysis suggests that aluminium prices at the LME may consolidate in a narrow range of US$2,021-2,046 per tonne over the near term before reversing the trend once again. As on August 11, LME official cash buyer aluminium price (Bid Price) stands at US$2,039.50 per tonne, cash seller &...
Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA), the largest industrial company in the United Arab Emirates outside oil and gas, has shipped around 5,000 tonnes of spent pot lining, a by-product from its industrial process, to Befesa, a company in the United Kingdom that specialises in waste management and recycling. Befesa will treat and recycle the spent pot lining to create useful raw materials for the cement, fibreglass and ceramics industries. Spent pot lining is the worn out inner lining of aluminium smelting pots. The lining is typically replaced every four to five years. The global aluminium industry produces over one million tonnes of spent pot lining every year according to industry experts, much of which is then kept in indefinite storage. EGA aims to recycle all its spent pot lining over the...
According to a report from The Australian, US-based Century Aluminium and Glencore are eying Rio Tinto’s Pacific Aluminium business, which is up for sale through Deutsche Bank at an estimated cost of $US1 billion ($1.3bn). The Pacific division owns the Bell Bay Aluminium smelter in Tasmania and Boyne smelter 20km south of Gladstone on the central Queensland coast in Australia. It also owns the Tomago Aluminium smelter and a majority stake in the New Zealand’s Tiwai Point aluminium smelter in Southland. Century Aluminium has primary aluminium facilities in the US and Iceland and has been running under capacity due to lower aluminium prices in last two years. Deutsche bank is currently working on Rio’s aluminium assets sale. The process is expected to start in October. Rio announced its...
