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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France’s Fives Group made an agreement with Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization (IMIDRO) on making joint venture for the construction of an anode production plant in Iran. Anode, which is made from calcined petroleum coke (CPC), is used in the process of extracting aluminum from its oxide, alumina. The suggestion for making this joint venture was put forward in a meeting between the FIVES’s director for the Middle East region and IMIDRO’s Board of Director’s Chairman Mehdi Karbasian on the verge of the trip of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to France which is scheduled for November 16 -18. The FIVES’s director said Iran’s nuclear deal with the World’s major powers has provided many opportunities for the foreign companies to invest in the country;...
Aluminium major Alcoa says it will be shutting down its West smelter plant in Massena and will abandon plans to modernize the already-shuttered Massena East plant. The announcement from the company will put nearly 500 people out of work, the latest in a long series of cutbacks in Alcoa's Massena operations over the past 10 years. The company says it was forced to take decisive action after seeing aluminium prices drop 30 percent in the past year. "Very concerned about the impact this will have in the short term ...also the long-term ... last major employer that we have ... It is detrimental to Massena," said Massena Mayor Timmy Currier. "Spend the next few days discussing what is best for our members, getting all the benefits we can, whether it be state or out of our contract that we can...
LME aluminium may break resistance at $1,515 per tonne and rise towards the next resistance at $1,532, as it has found support at $1,488. These two resistances and support are identified respectively as the 114.6 percent, the 100 percent and the 138.2 percent Fibonacci projection levels of a downtrend from the October 9 high of $1,646. The consolidation within the range of $1,488-$1,515 could be a continuation pattern, to be followed by a gain towards $1,548, the 86.4 percent level. A break below $1,488 could open the way towards the 161.8 percent level at $1,462.
Bharat Aluminium Company Limited (Balco), a subsidiary of Vedanta Limited, inaugurated its Chotia coal mine on November 3, 2015. The mine was allocated to Balco in February this year after the company emerged as the highest bidder for it in the first phase of coal auction. Balco has projected three lakh tonnes of coal will be mined during FY 2016 from the Chotia coal mine, which incidentally is the only coal mine of Vedanta group. Balco had bid a price of Rs 3,025 per tonne during the auctions, which is considerably lower than the import price of Rs 4,500 for a similar grade, the company said in a statement on Saturday. Ramesh Nair, CEO & whole-time director, Balco who inaugurated the mine said on the ocassion: "'Chotia is integral to Balco's strategy. It will add to our coal security by...
Aluminium prices inched higher last week boosted by Alcoa‘s production declines. Physical premiums too improved slightly driven by the recent short-term price movements. However, there is even more to look at for those investing in firms like Alcoa, Rio Tinto Group and Norsk Hydro – notably, the London Metal Exchange‘s aluminium inventories, says Shanghai Metals Market. In short, LME’s aluminium inventory has been steadily dropping after reaching about 5.5 million metric tons (mt) in mid-2013. According to Market Realist, that drop was compounded in October with aluminium inventory at LME warehouses down 138,900 mt. As of this week, LME warehouses recorded a total aluminium inventory of 3.03 million mt, according to the news source, of which nearly 36% is from cancelled warrants. All the...
Qatalum recently participated in the GAC Environment Conference 2015 in Doha, Qatar by delivering the event’s welcome speech and presenting a number of case studies relative to sustainability. As the aluminium industry grows in importance amidst a slump experienced by the Middle East’s energy sector, the Conference offered an opportunity for Qatalum to focus on the event’s central theme: the environment. The GAC Environment Conference was launched to provide an opportunity for sharing and discussing environmental developments as they relate to emission control in smelters and power stations. Through a series of sessions, the Conference provided attendees the opportunity to network whilst gathering a range of essential information. Khalid Laram, Qatalum’s CEO, delivered an address to the...
LME aluminium prices though inched up higher this week, it is still a far cry from where it can pacify aluminium producers in major markets globally. According to Bank of America Merrill Lynch, while China’s aluminium exports have now stabilised somewhat, headwinds to aluminium quotations may persist near term, especially if some market participants release working capital and dump unreported stocks into LME warehouses. “In this scenario, which we believe is possible, aluminium may fall to $1,200/t (54c/lb),”BofAML says. The sustained pressure on aluminium prices suggests that more than 50% of smelters globally are not profitable. Historically, this has prompted production curtailments. Some producers have already announced their plans to cap production; however, the crisis situation...
The misearbly distressed US aluminium industry is fighting for survival as the price of aluminium plumbs depths not seen since 2009. Century Aluminium, a company owned by the Glencore Group, that suffered huge losses in the recently ended quarter, is fighting back. A lobby group funded by Century Aluminum has started a petition and online campaign urging the US government to take action against China, which it blames for subsidising lossmaking domestic producers of the metal and driving down prices. The US could stop producing aluminium by next year if prices continue to decline, according to the analysts of a US based consultancy firm. That would mean more job losses and making the country completely reliant on imports of the metal that is consumed in vast quantities by its aerospace,...
US aluminium premiums have jumped to their highest in three months after Alcoa announced plans to idle the bulk of its US smelting capacity, stirring speculation among traders that the market may have turned a corner. Spot CME Midwest premiums rose to 8 cents/lb on Monday for the biggest one-day jump in months as traders scrambled to secure metal in anticipation of lower domestic output even as global inventories are plentiful. Worries about waning demand from China, the world’s top producer, also linger. Premiums were firm around 7.9 cents on November 3, Tuesday. On Monday, one of the world’s leading aluminium producers announced it would curtail production at three of its four US smelters, slashing annual capacity by 500,000 tonnes. The rise in surcharges, paid on top of the benchmark...
Lightweight metals leader Alcoa reported progress on the company’s performance against three-year financial targets and its continuing transformation as it prepares to separate into two industry-leading, publicly-traded companies. Alcoa also outlined a clear roadmap to complete its separation in the second half of 2016. The company delivered the update at its 2015 Investor Day event in Grand Rapids, Michigan. “Alcoa’s transformation continues to create exciting profitable growth in our Value-Add business and lower the cost position of our Upstream business to ensure success throughout the cycle,” said Klaus Kleinfeld, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “Culminating our successful multi-year transformation, we have now set a clear path to separating the portfolios into two strong,...
The CEO of the Saudi Arabian mining company "Ma’aden" Khalid bin Saleh Al-Mudaifer announced the patronage of His Royal Highness Prince Saud bin Nayef bin Abdul Aziz Al-Saud, the governor of the Eastern Province of the Arab International Aluminium Conference and Exhibition "ARABAL 2015", which will be hosted by Ma’aden. The event takes place between the fifteenth and seventeenth of November in Dhahran International Exhibitions Center in the Eastern Province, and will be attended by His Excellency Engineer Ali Al-Naimi, the Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources. Engineer Al-Mudaifer spoke at a press conference hosted by Ma’aden yesterday in order to shed light on the final preparations for "ARABAL" and the themes addressed and activities associated with this global gathering....
Aluminum notched higher after Alcoa Inc., the largest U.S. producer, announced reductions in smelting and refining capacity, in a latest response to Chinese export deluge that have created a global surplus and driven prices to the lowest level in more than six years. The metal used to make everything from aircraft to window frames and cans climbed as much as 1.5 percent to $1,516 a metric ton, the highest level in a week, after the New York-based company said it will reduce smelting capacity by 503,000 metric tons and alumina refining by 1.2 million tons. The measures will be completed by the end of next quarter. Prices have slumped 27 percent in the past year after Chinese shipments surged to a record as new low-cost capacity started in the world’s biggest supplier. Goldman Sachs Group...
Aluminium on London metal Exchange (LME) may break resistance at $1,515 per tonne and rise towards the resistance range of $1,532-$1,548, as indicated by its wave pattern and a Fibonacci projection analysis. Resistance is provided by the 114.6 percent Fibonacci projection level of a downtrend from the October 9 high of $1,646. The trend could be broken down into five small waves, with the fourth wave having peaked around $1,548, the 86.4 percent level. Wave theory suggests this peak may be approached. However, the target at $1,548 could only be confirmed when aluminium overcomes resistance at $1,532, the 100 percent level. Support is at $1,505, the 123.6 percent level, a break below which could lead to a loss to the 138.2 percent level at $1,488.
China imported 10,600 mt of primary aluminum in September, down 11,200 million tonnes (mt) MoM, but up 97.93% YoY, customs data showed. The MoM decline is due to lower SHFE/LME aluminum price ratio. In September, tolling trade remained the major trade mode, and aluminum ingot imported not via tolling trade was rarely sold in China’s domestic market. Aluminum premiums in Japan fell to USD 90/mt in late October, down USD 10/mt from August. Despite falling aluminum premiums overseas, supply glut in domestic market and a 17% VAT will offer little incentive to import. This, combined with further decline in the SHFE/LME aluminum price ratio, means that imports will continue falling in October.
Orders to remove aluminum from warehouses tracked by the biggest metals exchange rose for a third day, the longest stretch in more than a year, prompting traders to close out bearish bets on prices that are near a six-year low. Canceled warrants, as the bookings are known, surged 21 percent in the past three days to 1.1 million metric tons (mt), the highest in five weeks, London Metal Exchange (LME) data show. While the market is in surplus, the bookings are probably a sign that supplies are tightening and have spurred traders to cover positions on further price declines, according to ICBC Standard Bank Plc. "It’s unlikely to be related to real demand," Leon Westgate, an analyst at ICBC Standard Bank in London, said by phone. "With the large tonnages like that, it’s likely to be...
Global aluminium producer Rusal has completed preparation of a testing site for the RA-550 reduction cell. Prior to this, the Russia-based company completed engineering works and plans to commission the first cell in the third quarter of 2016. According to Rusal, the RA-550 cell development is aimed at achieving better levels of technical and economic performance in aluminium smelting. Rusal technical director Viktor Mann said: "RA-550 is a reduction cell with a breakthrough design for future smelters and upgrade projects at Rusal's existing smelting capacities. Alongside the technical and process standards, it is a compulsory requirement for any modern production facility to comply with health and safety standards and to minimise hazardous emissions into the atmosphere. So, all...
Aluminum companies across the United States have come forward to form a new coalition aimed at fighting trade practices by China they think will cause potential damage to the U.S. aluminum indusrty in as little as eight to nine months. The coalition holds China responsible for heavily subsidizing its aluminum production that is causing a situation of oversupply in the global market resulting in price fall unlike ever before. The group comprising several aluminium producers is headed by embattled Century Aluminum, which posted a significant quarterly loss of $51.6 million last week and recently cut down production at its Kentucky plant. The coalition argues that China’s subsidization violates World Trade Organization rules. “As such, USTR should invoke its rights under the WTO and request...
AluSolutions 2016, the only free exhibition and conference addressing sustainability challenges in aluminium production and processing, has announced Dr Fiona Solomon, Executive Director of the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative(ASI), as a keynote speaker. Dr Solomon brings nearly 20 years of experience in sustainability and corporate social responsibility to her role at the ASI and will present on how the industry can address the environmental, social and governance aspects of the aluminium value chain. Other speakers will include a representative from European Aluminium, Melanie Williams, Graham Bruce from Taha International Corporation, as well as a representative from the Bureau for Middle East Recycling. With more speakers still to be announced, organiser Quartz Business Media is...
