The most-traded SHFE aluminium contract opened at RMB 24,000 per tonne in the night session on September 28, reached a high of RMB 24,055 per tonne and a low of RMB 23,950 per tonne, and closed at RMB 24,000 per tonne, up RMB 50 per tonne or 0.21 per cent from the previous close. Futures stabilised after a sharp decline, with prices falling below the 5/10/20/40/60 moving averages across all timeframes, turning these averages from support into resistance. Trading volume during the session was 53,872 lots, with open interest at 271,000 lots, down 3,240 lots, driven mainly by bear position reductions. On the technical front, the 4-hour MACD death cross continued, with DIFF trading well below DEA and green bars expanding significantly, indicating strong short-term bearish momentum. On...
The conclusion of negotiations on the EU–India Free Trade Agreement creates a new context for Indian manufacturers considering the European market, but future opportunities will increasingly depend on regulatory preparedness as well as commercial competitiveness. Negotiations on the Free Trade Agreement were concluded in January 2026. Earlier this month, the European Commission submitted proposals to the EU Council for its signature and conclusion. The Agreement is not yet in force and remains subject to the required European and Indian procedures. For the Indian aluminium industry, the development comes at a time when access to Europe is increasingly shaped by environmental, product and supply-chain regulation. One of the most immediate examples is the European Union’s Carbon Border...
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Alcoa continues to rally following confirmation that Paul Singer’s Elliott Management bought a 6.4% stake in the company, which says it has had "constructive discussions" with Elliott. The activist firm also supports Alcoa's planned spinoff next year, announced in September, of downstream assets into a separate company. “It’s obviously a vote of confidence from a firm that is steeped in strategic actions,” Sterne Agee CRT analyst tells Bloomberg. Elliott's stake makes it the second-biggest shareholder in the company after Vanguard Group, which had an 8.21% stake as of September 30.
52% of the 27 Chinese aluminium smelters surveyed by SMM are bearish toward this week’s aluminium prices. Another 41% expect prices to stabilize, while the rest 7% see a rally. Those pessimists see LME aluminium falling below USD 1,440/mt and SHFE 1602 aluminium down below RMB 9,800/mt. They see poor market fundamentals in China as the major negative factor. Scale of production cuts in China is too small to reverse supply glut. Stocks in trading markets remain high. Processors are running at low capacity and buying only to need. Spot discounts in China remain high at above RMB 100/mt, acting as constrain on SHFE aluminium . Technically, SHFE aluminium has met strong resistance at moving averages. Negative technical side and a firm dollar on high hopes for rate hike will send LME aluminium...
Qatalum released its 2014 sustainability report. The report demonstrates how Qatalum has contributed significantly to the realization of the Qatar National Vision 2030, and its four pillars of economic, human, social and environmental development. Qatalum's status as a world-leading smelter means that its strong performance is linked to the achievement of both corporate and national goals. The report details how Qatalum has built on a strong sustainability foundation to hit a number of important milestones. In 2014, Qatalum produced 640,153 tonnes of aluminium, making it the thirteenth biggest aluminium producer in the world. Profits reached a record US$199 million, an increase of 60% from 2013. Qatalum became the fourth most efficient aluminium smelter in the world, according to the...
Lightweight metals leader Alcoa today announced that it has entered into a three-and-a-half year agreement with New York State to increase the competitiveness of the Massena West smelter. The company had previously announced plans to curtail the facility amid prevailing market conditions. The agreement will help maintain hundreds of jobs in New York’s North Country, improve the cost position of the smelter and support growth projects for the casthouse. “Senator Schumer and Governor Cuomo have been tremendous allies for Alcoa’s Massena operations for many years and we thank them for their continued support,” said Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Klaus Kleinfeld. “Today’s agreement helps better position the smelter in light of prevailing market conditions, providing this facility a...
China’s primary aluminium imports zoomed to 34,927 metric tonnes (mt) in October, recording a significant 506.75 percent year-on-year rise, while the first nine months of 2015 saw a 47.57 percent decline in imports, as per data released by the General Administration of Customs. The data released today shows, shipment was highest from Iran. The Middle East country overtook Australia as the major supplier of primary aluminium to China. Imports from Australia declined 71.08 percent y-o-y during the January-October period of 2015. New Zealand also shipped a major volume of primary aluminium to China. Imports from the Kiwis increased to 2,533 mt in October and 17,374 mt during the January-October period of 2015.
The latest report published by the World Bureau of Metal Statistics (WBMS) indicates that global primary aluminium market has recorded a deficit during the initial nine months of the year. As per the report, the market reported a deficit of 370,000 tons when matched with the deficit of 654,000 reported during entire year 2014. The production of primary aluminium was up by 7.5% during the nine-month period from January to September this year. The global production rose by 2,986 kt during this period, when compared with a year ago. The total reported stock of metal has declined further by 135,000 tonnes during the month of September. The stocks at the end of the initial nine-month period stood at 4,145 kt, which is sufficient to meet 28 days demand. It must be noted that the stock levels at...
The London Metal Exchange (LME) yesterday announced the successful launch of LME Aluminium Premiums, LME Steel Rebar and LME Steel Scrap, the first new contracts to be offered by the Exchange in more than five years. “Today’s announcement highlights the LME’s new approach to market engagement,” says Garry Jones, CEO of the LME. “This has been an extremely customer-focussed product launch, and we have collaborated with participants throughout the metals value chain to ensure we have created contracts that people want to trade.” The new Scrap and Rebar contracts will be traded on LMEselect, allowing industry participants to reduce their risk exposure by hedging more steps in the steel production process. The contracts are cash-settled against physical Turkish scrap and rebar price indexes....
The importance of the aluminium sector and ‘value added’ products will be showcased at the upcoming Gulf Industry Fair 2016, which will take place in February 2016, in Bahrain. The event will take place from February 9 to 11, at the Bahrain International Exhibition and Convention Centre. Led by Aluminium Bahrain (Alba), one of the world’s leading aluminium smelters, and supported by the Gulf Aluminium Council (GAC), the Aluminium Zone at Gulf Industry Fair 2016 promises to reflect the trends of the global aluminium industry, which continues to drive opportunity for downstream suppliers such as Bahraini companies Balexco, Midal Cables, Ameeri Industries and Turk Mechanical. Alba’s Line 6 Expansion Project, will add approximately 514,000 tonnes to the company’s current annual capacity of...
Qatalum’s aluminium production scaled up 6% above the plant’s design capacity in 2014, said CEO Khalid Laram. He was speaking at the Arab International Aluminium Conference and Exhibition (ARABAL) in Dammam, Saudi Arabia recently. Qatalum was the platinum sponsor of the event. On another milestone achieved by the Qatar-based aluminium industry leader, Laram said Qatalum recently achieved the globally recognised environmental ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 certification. With Qatalum’s ISO/TS 16949 certification for foundry alloy products, it produces premium quality value added products with 60% production being sold to meet the growing and precision orientated automotive sector. “The aluminium industry is growing year on year and the increasing number of milestones Qatalum is able to present...
LME aluminum will fall further to $1,450-1,480 per tonne next week, SMM expects. A firm US dollar amid high expectations for US rate hike this year and concerns over China economic slowdown all bode ill for LME aluminum. Another six Chinese aluminum smelters announced production cuts this past week, but not enough to reverse poor market fundamentals. Positions of SHFE 1602 aluminum, the most active one, were as high as 277,000 as of November 20, many of which are believed to be short bets. SMm expects SHFE 1602 aluminum to drop to 9,650-9,950 yuan per tonne next week. In China’s spot market, despite falling stocks in trading markets, it still takes time for demand to recover. Spot discounts are expected at 80-120 yuan per tonne over SHFE front-month contract.
Aluminium prices settled flat as prices recovered from lows despite of concerns over faltering Chinese demand and the dollar traded at its strongest in more than a decade. Russian aluminium giant Rusal plans to decide in mid-December which aluminium smelters to suspend as a part of its plans to potentially cut up to 200,000 tonnes of production. Rusal, the world's top aluminium producer, is looking to cut production, under pressure from sliding prices due to a market surplus. Rusal has trimmed its forecast for global aluminium demand growth in 2015 to 5.6 percent and raised its forecast for a global aluminium surplus this year by a third to 373,000 tonnes. Aluminium stocks held at three major Japanese ports stood at 433,700 tonnes at the end of October, down 8.3 percent from a month...
Aluminium prices eased by 0.16% to INR 96.50 per kg in futures trade today as participants reduced their positions amid weak global cues. Besides, subdued demand in the domestic spot markets weighed on aluminium prices. At the Multi Commodity Exchange, aluminium for delivery in November month weakened by 15 paise, or 0.16% to INR 96.50 per kg in business turnover of 324 lots. Likewise, the metal for delivery in December contract was trading lower by a similar margin to INR 98.10 per kg in 21 lots. Marketmen said the weakness in aluminium at futures trade was mostly in tune with a weak trend in global markets. Globally, aluminium for delivery in three month fell 0.3% at the London Metal Exchange, while in Shanghai Futures Exchange it slumped to its lowest since at least 2004. Meanwhile,...
Hydro supports a global climate agreement to curb greenhouse gas emissions, including putting a price on carbon emissions, in connection with the upcoming UN Conference on Climate Change. The COP21 (21st Conference of the Parties) gathering in Paris November 30-Dec. 11 is expected to agree to a new international deal on climate change to keep global warming below 2°C. “We regard sustainability both as part of our license to operate and as key to our future competitiveness,” says President & CEO Svein Richard Brandtzæg. “Doors will start to close on those who remain part of the problem, while new doors will open for those who are part of the solution. “We have one of the most ambitious climate strategies in our industry, which is to become carbon-neutral from a life-cycle perspective...
State-owned Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA), one of the largest aluminium firms in the world, has picked seven banks to raise a $4.9 billion loan to refinance debt taken on for some of its projects. EGA, created by the merger of two state-owned aluminium companies Dubai Aluminium (Dubal) and Abu Dhabi's Emirates Aluminium (Emal), is jointly owned by Abu Dhabi investment fund Mubadala and the state company which holds Dubai's most high-profile assets, Investment Corporation of Dubai (ICD). The company has mandated BNP Paribas, Citi, Dubai Islamic Bank, Emirates NBD, ING, National Bank of Abu Dhabi and Natixis to arrange the loan. Marketing to other banks is expected be start as early as this week, the sources said on condition of anonymity as the information is not public. A spokeswoman...
In the new Sino-Russian energy cooperation agreement, the two sides reached a consensus of reducing the output of aluminum products. Due to the excessive supply, the aluminum price has ever dropped the lowest since 2009. Aluminum Corporation Of China Limited and the world's top aluminum producer Rusal also joined hands in "smelting new alloys". Rusal Deputy CEO Oleg Mukhamedshin said, after solving the problem of excessive output, Russia may build a new smelter to provide cleaner aluminum products with more commercial value to the Chinese market and expected the market needs about three years to balance. Mukhamedshin the two giants may cooperate in alumina and bauxite development and the products will be supplied to the Chinese market.
Vedanta Resources Plc, India’s biggest producer of aluminium, copper and zinc, plans to cut costs by as much as 25% as it battles a global slump that sank industrial metal prices to a six-year low, chairman Anil Agarwal said. The London-listed mining firm will “tighten” capital spending and “do whatever is necessary” by way of innovation to help boost profit margins, he said in an interview in Jaipur. The prices of the three metals have dropped at least 25% in the past year as latest factory output data from China, the world’s biggest consumer, signalled the rout is deepening. “This is the worst I’ve ever seen,” said Agarwal. “We have to reinvent ourselves to cut costs, bring more efficiency. The fittest will survive and we believe we are the lowest cost quartile in the industry.” Apart...
Surcharges for physical delivery of aluminum in Europe leveled off after recent gains and may come under pressure from additional supply if Chinese exports rebound and some inventories are liquidated. The surcharges, or premiums, which consumers pay on top of the London Metal Exchange (LME) cash price for immediate delivery of metal, have gradually climbed over the past couple of months amid tighter availability, says SMM.
ALUMINUM USA, which celebrated its premiere at the Cobo Convention Center in Detroit from November 11-12, 2015, was a success with good prospects for the future. 172 exhibitors from 20 countries showcased lightweight manufacturing solutions. Besides key US players, numerous companies from Canada, Europe and Asia attended at ALUMINUM USA – from suppliers of raw material, semi-finished and finished to producers of machinery, plant and equipment for aluminium processing and manufacturing. 920 visitors from the aluminium industry as well as the automotive, transport, building and packaging industries, came to the first edition. The exhibitors were practically unanimous in their conclusions: with ALUMINUM USA, a new trade fair was launched that has the potential for long-term success. “The...
