China Steel Aluminum, a subsidiary of China Steel, will invest approximately TWD 1 billion (USD 32 million) to build a smart manufacturing plant in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. The investment was among two expansion applications approved by the Invest Taiwan Office on October 1, with a combined value of TWD 1.1 billion (USD 33 million). The new facility will be located in the Xiaogang District and focus on smart manufacturing and lower-carbon production. China Steel Aluminum, Taiwan’s largest manufacturer of aluminium rolled products, produces aluminium plates, sheets, coils and foil, as well as zinc alloy and hot-dip galvanised ingots. The investment supports the company’s shift toward high-end and low-carbon aluminium materials. The plant will integrate artificial intelligence (AI), the Internet...
This week, the overseas aluminium market was generally mediocre, with limited trading activity across major markets. In South Korea, purchases were mainly small-scale restocking, with little change in prices. In Thailand, demand remained weak, and some sellers slightly lowered their offers due to shipment pressure. The market focused on Q4 MJP quarterly pricing, with Rio Tinto's latest offer further reduced, and market expectations suggested there is still room for the final settlement price to move lower. South Korea: Mediocre market, transactions mainly small-scale restocking This week, trading in the South Korean market was very subdued, with purchasing demand limited to small-scale restocking and no concentrated procurement seen. Sellers showed moderate willingness to offer, with...
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United States Geological Survey (USGS) has reported that US domestic primary aluminum production in March 2015 was 143000 metric tons. The average daily production was 4,600 t, slightly less than the daily production during the previous month and 7% less than that in March 2014. Total aluminum recovered from scrap in March 2015 was 300,000 t, slightly more than that recovered in February and in March 2014. Of this, 164000 tonnes of aluminum was recovered from new scrap, 3% more than the amount during the previous month and slightly more than the amount recovered in March 2014. The amount of aluminum recovered from old scrap was 136000 tonnes, slightly more than the amount recovered in the previous month and in March 2014. Total imports of aluminum in the first quarter of 2015 were 5% more...
Hind Aluminium reported its results showing a rise in net profit by 778.26% to INR 4.04 crore in the quarter ended in March 2015 rising from INR 0.46 crore reported for the same period in 2014. Total standalone income from operations was reported to be INR 154.22 crore for the March quarter of 2015 rising from INR 82.68 crore seen in March quarter 2014. Sales rose 87.02% from INR 82.11 crore in March quarter 2014 to INR 153.56 crore in March quarter 2015. In terms of the full year, the profit rose 24.23% to INR 7.28 crore in March 2015 as against INR 5.86 crore during the previous year ended March 2014. Sales declined 0.67% to INR 435.47 crore in the year ended March 2015 as against INR 438.39 crore during the previous year ended March 2014. Hind Aluminium shares closed at 54.00 on June...
Noranda Aluminum Holding Corp will have to seek a new power supplier or negotiate a new contract with Ameren Corp in five years to keep its Missouri smelter running, the latest obstacle for its only primary aluminum plant. Energy provider Ameren's Missouri division told Noranda last Thursday it will not extend a power contract for its smelter in New Madrid after the current contract expires in 2020, Noranda said in a regulatory filing on Tuesday. That was the five years' notice needed to avoid an automatic one-year renewal. The notice comes just one month after Missouri's state regulator approved a reduced power rate for the 253,000 tonne-per-year smelter, which Ameren Missouri had fought. The news comes just as Noranda prepares to fight an attempt by the government of Jamaica to prevent...
Aluminum gained for the second time in three sessions on speculation that demand will climb in China, the world’s top metals consumer. A Chinese factory gauge rose last month, signaling that the government’s monetary easing has helped to cushion the economy. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. said Monday that more aluminum will probably be used in the nation’s electrical grid after updates from China’s National Energy Administration on metal standards. Inventories monitored by the London Metal Exchange are at the lowest since April 2009. “A decline in stockpiles in always supportive as it helps the fundamental story,” Mike Dragosits, a senior commodity strategist at TD Securities in Toronto, said in a telephone interview. “There are expectations of further monetary easing in China,” which will keep...
The Aluminum Association recently announced a new partnership with the Department of Energy (DOE) to increase the number of aluminum industry jobs in the U.S. and explore new, sustainable technologies to advance U.S. manufacturing. The DOE’s Aluminum Industry Jobs Partnership will identify opportunities to expand plant capacity and improve workforce development systems to help bring qualified candidates to the industry. Currently, the $65 billion aluminum industry directly employs around 155,000 workers in the United States. The Aluminum Industry Jobs Partnership will be composed of participants from the Aluminum Association and its member companies as well as the DOE Jobs Strategy Council (JSC) and Office of the Secretary. The JSC is a cross-cutting initiative that integrates the...
Aiming to raise awareness of its industry leadership status, Emirates Global Aluminium ("EGA") is proud to be a lead sponsor of HARBOR's 8th Aluminium Outlook Summit, organised and hosted by HARBOR Aluminium Intelligence in Chicago, USA, from 2 to 4 June 2015. EGA's sponsorship activities at the event include hosting the main registration area and conducting a networking lunch for delegates on 3 June. More importantly, Walid Al Attar (Chief Marketing Officer at EGA) will participate in the 'Strategic Market Panel' on 3 June, during which key industry topics will be discussed. No stranger to the annual HARBOR Outlook Summits, Al Attar has been a regular attendee and speaker at the event since EGA and its operating subsidiaries began participating in 2010. "2015 marks the third consecutive...
China imported 17,500 mt of primary aluminum in April, down from a year ago, but up 65.09% MoM, customs data showed. The SHFE/LME aluminum price ratio climbed from 7.1 in early March to 7.5 in April, favoring aluminum imports. In addition, overseas aluminum premiums continued falling, with premiums in East Asia down from USD 400/mt at the end of last year to around USD 150/mt, another incentive for imports. Overseas aluminum prices will be pressured by growing supply while aluminum prices in China will be relatively resistant to declines. As such, the SHFE/LME aluminum price ratio will increase further, which will boost imports.
The Indonesian Resources Studies (Iress) praised on Sunday the performance of state-owned aluminum producer PT Indonesia Asahan Aluminium (Inalum) for doubling its April-December 2014 profits from the same period of the previous fiscal year. “Inalum’s increased net profits show that Indonesians in charge of the company’s management have mastered aluminum processing,” Iress president director Marwan Batubara said as quoted by Antara in a statement in Jakarta on Tuesday. According to official data, Inalum’s production of aluminum bars reached 199,692 tons from April to December 2014, up 4.1 percent from 190,363 tons in the same period of the previous year. Marwan said the company’s success could not be separated from the work performance of its management. With its doubled profits, he said,...
Continuous coal price fall has further cut power costs at Chinese aluminum smelters using captive power, SMM has learned. The Bohai-Rim Steam-Coal (5,500 Kcal) Price Index (BSPI) fell for 19 weeks running to 414 yuan ($67) per tonne as of May 22. As much as 70% of the country’s operational aluminum capacity relies on captive power, with the rest 30% using on-grid power, SMM statistics found.
Indian aluminium companies have raised an alarm demanding quick action from the government to put a stop to “Chinese dumping” which is affecting their business adversely, industry leaders say. Hindalco’s managing director D Bhattacharya says that since the Chinese GDP growth rate has slowed and has now become lower than India’s, there is little growth in the manufacturing sector. The aluminium sector however receives ample boost from their government in terms of subsidies and incentives. If the Chinese economy does not pick up, and the overall manufacturing sector does not improve, they will continue to dump their highest produced commodity, aluminium, causing a serious impact on all manufacturers outside China. Some countries have already imposed anti-dumping duties on imports from...
Hindalco Industries Ltd’s profitability took a hit in the March quarter, compared with the December quarter. Though its aluminium output rose smartly as its new capacity ramped up, falling prices and weaker metal premiums affected realizations. The copper business did relatively better but its profitability, too, declined. Aluminium production rose by 11.5% while that of copper rose 5.3%. In the March quarter, Hindalco’s stand-alone revenue rose by 8.9% to INR9,371.6 crore, over the preceding quarter, with aluminium leading the way with a 13.9% increase. But the aluminium division’s segment profit fell by a massive 20.3%, and copper segment’s profit fell by 1.6%. Lower realizations hurt aluminium margins, while copper suffered due to adverse market conditions, according to a company...
Aluminium slid on Friday on continued worries about heavy output from China swamping the global market and was on track for its biggest monthly decline in over 2-1/2 years. Three-month aluminium on the London Metal Exchange dropped 1 percent to $1,758 a tonne by 0943 GMT after gaining 2.2 percent on Thursday. Aluminium is set for a loss of 8.7 percent in May, the biggest monthly drop since October 2012, as data showed Chinese output rose to 2.59 million tonnes in April. "I definitely see more downside risks than upside potential for aluminium because of the supply glut," said analyst Daniel Briesemann at Commerzbank in Frankfurt. "Looking at the technical side, I wouldn't be surprised to see the price to drop to $1,700 and it would be very interesting if it crashes through this level."
State-run National Aluminium Company (Nalco) on Saturday reported a more than doubling of its net profit of INR354.87 crore for the fourth quarter ended March on the back of an exceptional gain as against INR172.45 crore in the same quarter a year ago. New Delhi, May 30 (IANS) State-run National Aluminium Company (Nalco) on Saturday reported a more than doubling of its net profit of INR354.87 crore for the fourth quarter ended March on the back of an exceptional gain as against INR172.45 crore in the same quarter a year ago. The Bhubaneshwar-headquarterd Nalco said in a stock exchange filing that during the quarter in question there was an out-of-court settlement with the Odisha government regarding "disputed electricity duty, interest on unpaid electricity duty and the duty on...
Aluminium and copper prices recovered from recent losses as the US dollar weakened against the euro and optimism grew over a Greek debt deal. However some analysts were cautious over whether gains could be sustained due to plentiful supplies. Most other base metals also rebounded from a recent downturn that had been partly due to a stronger US dollar, which makes commodities priced in the US currency more expensive to buyers using other currencies. The euro has gained against the dollar after Greece expressed confidence this week it will soon seal a cash-for-reforms deal. 'We've had a bit of a bounce this morning. One of the reasons is because the dollar has stopped appreciating, in the short term at least,' said Stephen Briggs, metals strategist at BNP Paribas in London. There was also...
Vedanta India will acquire up to 5.33 percent stake, worth over INR 2,200 crore, in its group concern Cairn India next week. Anil Agarwal-led Vedanta India, which changed the name from Sesa Sterlite last month, is a promoter in Cairn India. It will acquire up to 100 million shares of the company from another promoter Twin Star Mauritius Holdings Ltd. In a BSE filing, Vedanta said it will acquire up to 5.33 percent stake or 100,000,000 shares of Cairn India from Twin Star Mauritius Holdings on June 3, 2015 or within a period of 90 days for INR 220.40 per share. After the acquisition of the shares, Vedanta India's stake in Cairn India will grow from 18.73 percent to 24.06 percent, said the filing on Wednesday. Twin Star Mauritius Holdings held 39.41 percent stake in Cairn Indiaas of March...
Aluminium hit its weakest in a year yesterday on rising supplies amid fears that the market is headed for the worst period in three years. Aluminium is in oversupply with a huge stock overhang, and output has continued to rise this year, with the latest industry figures showing daily average production rising to 68,500 tonnes in April. Norwegian producer Norsk Hydro said it would increase aluminium output by 35,000 tonnes per year. "Although LME stocks are falling there's (still) a lot of aluminium around and (then) we see large increases in production. Aluminium needs a deficit to erode overhead stocks," Fastmarkets head of research William Adams said. London Metal Exchange aluminium hit its lowest since March last year at $1,731 a tonne, and traded down 0.7 per cent in official midday...
Aditya Birla Group’s flagship company Hindalco Industries Ltd on Thursday reported a 35.7% decline in its stand-alone net profit for the March quarter, thanks to higher power and fuel, and finance costs, and weaker prices in the international markets . Net profit was at INR.159.53 crore as compared with INR.248.15 crore a year ago. Net sales for the quarter rose 11.1% from a year ago to INR.9,371.55 crore. The Bloomberg poll of 21 analysts had expected the company to post a net profit of INR.284 crore on a net sales of INR.8,304.5 crore. Power and fuel expenses rose 54.87% year-on-year to INR.1,425.72 crore while finance costs rose 117.3% to INR.466.34 crore. “Profit is lower given the lower realization, higher depreciation and interest arising out of capitalization of the assets at Mahan...
Analysts fear another slump in aluminium as the metal price falls by 9.7 percent in May making it the biggest monthly drop since October 2012. For 10 straight sessions aluminium has seen a continuous drop – the longest slump since January and oversupply looks like the reason for the slide. China, already known for pumping more metal into the system than required, is being further bolstered by cheap coal prices. More metal is being produced and this excess aluminium is likely to leak into the wider aluminium market outside China as well, according to a Citigroup analyst. A stronger US dollar is also helping the Chinese economy as the cost of production calculated in local currency is being replenished through revenues earned in dollars. Aluminium for delivery in three months dropped 0.8...
