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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Mecon, India's leading engineering consultant, has recommended imposition of minimum import price (MIP) on primary aluminium products. The firm submitted its report stating its findings and recommendations to the Aluminium Association of India last week. Mecon was appointed by the aluminium industry body comprising domestic aluminium producers Hindalco Industries Ltd., Bharat Aluminium Co. Ltd, Vedanta Ltd, to investigate the case of cheap aluminium imports from China and other countries flooding India market and come up with a report on why there was a need to impose a safeguard duty on the products' import. “The association has forwarded recommendation on imposing MIP at 15 per cent of London Metal Exchange (LME) price on primary aluminium imports to the ministry of mines. The mines...
Some big aluminium producers seek a premium of $95-$110 per ton from Japanese buyers for primary metal shipments in the January to March period, up 27-47 percent from the previous quarter, five sources involved in pricing talks said on Friday. Japan is Asia's biggest importer of the metal and the premiums for primary metal shipments it agrees to pay each quarter over the London Metal Exchange (LME) cash price set the benchmark for the region. Any increase in the quarterly premiums would mark the first rise in three quarters, and reflect tightening supply, although buyers said the initial offers were too high, the sources said. For the October-December quarter, Japanese aluminium buyers agreed to pay a premium of $75 a ton for the metal, down 17 percent to 19 percent from the prior...
Aluminium prices drifted lower by 0.91 per cent to INR119.85 per kg in futures trading today as traders reduced positions, driven by easing demand in the spot market. At Mumbai's Multi Commodity Exchange, aluminium for delivery in November declined by INR1.10, or 0.91 per cent to INR119.85 per kg in a business turnover of 297 lots. Similarly, the metal for delivery in December shed 95 paise, or 0.79 per cent, to INR119.80 per kg in 28 lots. Market analysts said offloading of positions by participants following easing demand from consuming industries at domestic spot markets, mainly led to the fall in aluminium prices at futures trade.
LME aluminium is trending higher. The contract after trading at around US$1,765.50/mt on Thursday closed at US$1,774/mt at the end of night trading. The current LME official cash buyer price of aluminium, as on November 25, stands at US$1,773/mt; the 3-months buyer price is US$1,775/mt; and the 3-months seller price is US$1,775.50/mt. The LME official opening stock of aluminium stands at 2137200 tonnes and total Live Warrants are estimated at 1355175 tonnes. LME Asian Reference Price of aluminium (3-months ABR) as on November 25, is estimated at US$1754.08/mt. According to Shanghai Metals Market forecast, LME aluminium will move between US$1,750-1,770/mt on Friday. In China, aluminium on Shanghai Metal Exchange traded at US$2,154/mt on Thursday. On Friday, November 25, the contract opened...
Rio Tinto outlines strategy to generate $5 billion of additional free cash flow over the next five years and the company has unveiled a productivity drive to achieve the same. Rio Tinto chief executive J-S Jacques underlined the strategy in a presentation at an investor seminar in Sydney with a strong focus on safety, cash generation, a world-class portfolio, commitment to capital discipline and the delivery of superior shareholder returns. The company said they plan to raise productivity across its $50 billion portfolio of assets by focusing on operational excellence and expect to generate a total $5 billion of further free cash flow by the end of 2021. Commenting on the new strategy, J-S Jacques said “Our strategy plays to our strengths: world-class assets, a strong balance sheet along...
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LME aluminium price continues to rise. On Wednesday, the contract closed at US$1,765/mt and Shanghai Metals Exchange says it will range between US$1,760-1,795/mt on Thursday, November 24. The current cash buyer price of LME aluminium is recorded at US$1765/mt and LME official opening stock of the metal stands at 2136300 tonnes. LME Asian Reference Price of aluminium (3-months ABR) as on November 24, is estimated at US$1754.08/mt. In China, aluminium on Shanghai Metal Exchange traded at US$2,174/mt on Wednesday. On Thursday it opened at US$2,154/mt down 0.91 per cent from the previous close. Aluminium traded on Shanghai Futures Exchange- SHFE 1712 aluminium will be refrained by soft spot aluminium. Suppliers rushed to sell goods in China’s domestic market hurting SHFE 1701 aluminium....
Rio Tinto has reached an agreement to sell its assets at Lochaber, Scotland to SIMEC for consideration totalling $410 million (£330 million). The sale purchase agreement comprises the sale of Rio Tinto’s 100 per cent shareholding in Alcan Aluminium UK Limited which includes the operating smelter, the hydroelectric facilities at Kinlochleven and Lochaber as well as all associated land. Rio Tinto Aluminium chief executive Alf Barrios said “This is a value-creating sale for Rio Tinto and represents another example of refining our portfolio to focus on our suite of tier one assets. “At the same time, our priority has been to ensure a long-term sustainable future for Lochaber and economic benefit for the wider Fort William community. There was significant interest in the assets, but SIMEC is...
In a recent submission to the government, the domestic aluminium industry body has sought supportive measures in the next Union budget, including increase in basic customs duty on aluminium products from 7.5 per cent to 15 per cent to check rising imports and reduction of clean energy cess on coal to INR50 per tonne. With a slowdown in the Chinese economy and devaluation of the Chinese Yuan, global metal prices have declined and threat of imports has increased. InfraCircle on 21 November reported domestic aluminium manufacturers have requested the government to exempt the domestic alumina manufacturers from anti-dumping duty on caustic soda. The key requests made by the industry includes increase in customs duty on aluminium products from 7.5 per cent to 15 per cent and reducing clean...
Primary aluminium producers in the Gulf region are looking at strategies to cut costs heavily as they find it difficult to cope with the rising global aluminium glut and protectionism under a new U.S. presidency, reported industry sources. All five Gulf aluminium producers namely, Emirates Global Aluminium, Aluminium Bahrain, Sohar Aluminium, Qatalum, Maaden- said they were planning cost cutting in order to deal with the oversupply of the metal exacerbated by the woes of low aluminium prices. "The most important factor in our business is to protect our margin," said Abdulla Al Kalban, the chief executive of EGA, at the International Aluminium Conference in Dubai today. "We keep hammering our costs every day." EGA is the Gulf’s largest aluminium producer and produces 2.4 million tonnes of...
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LME aluminium is on an upward trajectory. Marginal decline in China's aluminium exports this year coupled with steep rise in thermal coal and alumina prices have buoyed the prices up on the bourse, so much so that even the most pessimistic estimates put the annual demand growth rate of the metal at about 4 per cent. LME aluminium closed at US$1,739/mt after Tuesday's night trading. The current cash buyer price as on November 23 stands at US$1,738/mt. Three-Month LME aluminium prices are trending higher this year. The 3-months LME Buyer price is recorded at US$1,36.5/mt and 3-months LME Seller price is at US$1,737/mt. LME official opening stocks of aluminium as on November 23 stands at 2144100 tonnes. In China, aluminium on Shanghai Metal Exchange was traded at US$2,164/mt on Tuesday and...
After China, another region that is growing substantially in primary aluminium production is the GCC or the Gulf countries. The volume of aluminium production in the Gulf region stood at 5.2 million tonnes in 2015, accounting for around 10 per cent of total global output of 58 million tonnes. This was due to the major expansion of existing smelters and commissioning of new projects that the production is increasing at a faster rate. After oil and natural gas, now aluminium is one of the key economic drivers for the Gulf region. Forty per cent of the total aluminium production is utilised by the domestic downstream aluminium industries and about 60 per cent is exported to different parts of the world. {newsStudioGallery} Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) in UAE is the top primary aluminium...
The 20th Arab International Aluminium Conference (“ARABAL”), the Middle East's premiere aluminium industry event, opened its doors today at Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai, UAE. To be held from 22 to 24 November 2016, the two-day ARABAL conference and associated exhibition is expected to witness a mega congregation of more than 2,000 international delegates, speakers, sponsors, exhibitors and visitors from 40 countries across the globe. The event is hosted by Emirates Global Aluminium (“EGA”) for the sixth time this year under the able patronage of HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and UAE Minister of Finance. ARABAL is the biggest aluminium industry event of the Middle East wherein all the primary aluminium producers of the region namely Aluminium Bahrain BSC...
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Aluminium prices on major bourses across the world have staged a strong comeback after the last week's slump with LME aluminium closing at US$1,726/mt on Monday, November 21. Yesterday, the contract touched the 20-day moving average and is expected to challenge the 10-day moving average on Tuesday. LME aluminium will range between US$1,710-1,730/mt today, supported by rising crude oil, says Shanghai Metals Market. According to the latest Metals Balances Report published by the World Bureau of Metal Statistics (WBMS), the global primary aluminium market recorded a marginal deficit during the first nine months of the current year. The data revealed a deficit of 806,000 tons against a 550,000 tons deficit for the entire financial year of 2015. Global production of aluminium declined...
After a few years of lull, Indian aluminium industry is finally getting to experience a decent rise in consumption. Indian aluminium majors see the demand charting a double-digit growth in the current financial year, buoyed by automobile growth and enhanced industrial activity. Factors like increasing public investment in massive infrastructure and power sector reforms and unprecedented rural demand are also being viewed as key growth drivers. “Indian demand is expected to witness a strong double-digit growth following the steps taken up by the government to boost industrial production, its investment in infrastructure and its thrust on power sector reforms. Good monsoons are expected to boost rural demand,” noted a Hindalco spokesperson in a recent analyst review. Prior to this, TK...
Russian Federation is the 10th largest export economy in the world and raw aluminium happens to be one of its top exports valued at US$7.64 billion. In 2015, aluminium worth US$6.9 billion was shipped globally from Russia; the volume comprised 2.1 per cent of the country’s total exports. In the meantime, the global trade in unwrought aluminium amounted to US$20,941 million in 2015, showing strong fluctuations over the period under review. A significant drop in 2009 was followed by recovery over the next two years, until exports decreased again. Overall, there was an annual decrease of -2.9 per cent from 2007 to 2015. Russia remained the global leader in exports of unwrought aluminium. In 2015, Russia's unwrought aluminium exports totalled US$3762.6 million, which accounted for an 18 per...
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The possible infrastructure development plan from the newly elected U.S. President Donald Trump seems to have finally livened up the commodities market a bit. The base metal prices which were heading downward reversed their trends and responded favourably before the week ended on November 18, Friday. LME aluminium prices inched higher by 1.15 per cent to close at US$1,712/mt on Friday from a previous low of US$1,692.50/mt on Thursday. According to the Shanghai Metals Market forecast, LME aluminium that struggled at the 40-day moving average last week will range between US$1,680-1,705/mt on Monday, November 21, with support. The current LME Aluminium Official Cash Buyer Price stands at 1,711.50/mt. The Cash Seller & Settlement price is at US$1,712/mt, 3-months Buyer price is at...
According to a Reuter’s report, Century Aluminum Co. CFO Rick Dillon will be leaving the company in order to pursue another professional opportunity. A company report confirms the news and also announces that till the time the Board of Directors selects a replacement for Dillon, CEO Michael Bless, will assume interim responsibilities of the principal financial officer. Century CEO Michael Bless Dillon joined Century Aluminum in June 2014 as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Dillon's resignation will be effective from December 2, 2016. Commenting on Dillon’s departure, Mr. Bless said, “On behalf of everyone at Century, I would like to thank Rick for his service over the past couple years. Rick has made many important contributions to the company and we all wish him...
Aluminium consumption in India was estimated at 15.49 million tonnes (mt) during the second quarter of the current financial year. Total production volume, on the other side, stood at 14.47 mt in the same period previous year. Clearly, there is a demand-supply gap that remains to be bridged through imports. Following graph shows the existing aluminium production capacity of the country: India's total consumption of aluminium during third quarter of the current financial year is estimated at 15.20 mt against the expected aluminium production volume of 15.01 mt for the same period, revealed India ministry of mines data. The actual and targeted production volumes of the country's top aluminium producers for September 2016, are as follows: India's aluminium consumption is rising steadily and...
