The US September consumer confidence index plunged 6.7 points to 81.9, the lowest since 2014 and deteriorating across the board. The University of Michigan survey showed consumers' assessments of their current financial situation and that one year ahead both fell about 10 per cent, with high-price concerns continuing to brew. Inflation pressure showed no signs of easing. US Fed Governor Cook said AI demand growth, rising oil prices, and supply chain disruptions from Middle East conflicts would keep inflation under pressure, but gave no clear guidance on rate hikes. CME data showed the market-implied probability of a 25 bp rate hike in October had risen to 70.9 per cent, and the probability of a cumulative 50 bp hike by December reached 58.7 per cent. Tightening expectations strengthened...
The proposed Srikakulam aluminium smelter project in Andhra Pradesh is gaining momentum, with around 6,800 acres of saline land earmarked at Mulapeta and Pundi for the large-scale industrial development. The proposal could also bridge Odisha’s alumina industry with Andhra Pradesh’s coastal port infrastructure, forming a potential industrial link between the two states. Union Minister for Civil Aviation Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu discussed the proposed smelter with Union Minister for Mines G Kishan Reddy in Delhi, highlighting the availability of around 6,800 acres of saline land in Srikakulam district. Out of this, 5,000 acres are located in Mulapeta and 1,800 acres in Pundi. Explore the production, demand and consumption forecasts of bauxite and alumina in our report: “ Global Bauxite &...
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Svein Richard Brandtzæg, President and CEO in Norwegian aluminium company Norsk Hydro ASA, has informed the Board of Directors that he will leave Hydro to take over as President and CEO for Norwegian fertilizers group Yara International ASA from February 1, 2015, at the latest. The process to find a replacement for Brandtzæg has started, and a new President and CEO for Hydro will be announced in due time. Brandtzæg will continue as President and CEO of Hydro until further notice. The Board of Directors regrets Brandtzæg's decision to leave the company. Brandtzæg has been a great capacity for Hydro throughout his almost 30 years in the company and especially as CEO since 2009. Together with a solid and highly competent top management in Hydro, he has led the company through tough times and...
“The significance of mining sector is determined not by the amount of mineral resources it generates in a country but by the amount of catalytic input it gives towards driving the economy of the country,” said Anshuman Das, chairman-cum-managing director of Nalco during the 18Th International Conference on Non Ferrous Minerals & Metals – 2014 in Nagpur. Mr. Anshuman Das highlighted the significant contribution that the mining sector can have towards the overall industrial growth of a country and expressed his concern over the diminishing growth of the mining industry in India. He told that the total contribution of mining sector towards the GDP of India was about 3.4 % in 1992/93 and it has come down to about 2% at present. Even the standalone growth of the mining sector has also fallen...
LME aluminium looks neutral in a range of $1,961-$1,999 per tonne and an escape will point a direction. The range has been formed by the 76.4 percent and the 100 percent Fibonacci projection levels of an upward wave c, which developed from the June 12 low of $1,836. A drop below $1,961 may signal a reversal of the uptrend and a bearish target at $1,937, the 61.8 percent retracement, will be established. A rise above $1,999 will confirm the extension of the uptrend towards $2,038, the 123.6 percent projection level. The views expressed are his own. No information in this analysis should be considered as being business, financial or legal advice. Each reader should consult his or her own professional or other advisers for business, financial or legal advice regarding the products mentioned...
Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba), a leading aluminium producer in the Middle East, recently granted the 2014 Occupational Excellence Achievement Award run by the National Safety Council – USA. This award is granted to organizations that meet strict criterions based on the results in their safety performance in accordance with the OSHA requirements in the USA. Alba won the award based upon the tremendous reduction in its injury rates during 2013. Commenting on Alba's award for the 2014 Occupational Excellence Achievement Award, Alba's Chief Executive, Tim Murray said: “We believe that ownership of safety is everyone’s responsibility, We also believe that the improvement in safety performance is directly linked to increased employee productivity, Winning the ‘2014 Occupational Excellence...
Pittsburgh-headquartered aluminum major Alcoa forecasts the global aluminum demand to increase by 7% in 2014. The firm also has raised its deficit forecast for the year from earlier 730,000 tonnes. According to the company, the aluminum supply shortfall is likely to touch 930,000 tonnes this year. The report predicts 8-9% growth for global aerospace industry in the wake of robust demand for large commercial aircrafts and regional jets. The automotive sector is expected to grow at 1-4%. Alcoa forecasts the construction sector to grow at 4-6% and the packaging sector to grow by 2-3% during the year. The commercial transportation market is expected to remain flat with growth rate forecast between -1% and +3%. The European market is expected to remain weak in 2014. The struggling US aluminum...
The Union finance ministry’s department of disinvestment has appointed independent valuation firm American Appraisal Associates Inc. and merchant banking firm Resurgent India to manage the government sale of its stake in Bharat Aluminium Co. Ltd (Balco), American Appraisal said in a press statement. Earlier, the government had sought bids from merchant bankers to be submitted by 11 July for a fresh valuation of its residual stake in Balco with the intention of exiting the company. The government still holds 49% in Balco after selling 51% to Sterlite Industries Ltd in 2001 during the earlier National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government. Meanwhile, the disinvestment department has invited bids from merchant bankers for divesting 5% paid-up equity share capital of Oil and Natural Gas Corp....
LME aluminium is expected to approach a resistance at $1,999 per tonne again, to complete a wave c. This is the third wave of a three-wave cycle that developed from the June 12 low of $1,836, it may travel the same distance as the preceding wave a, to arrive at $1,999, a 100 percent projection level. A break above $1,999 will confirm an extension of the wave c towards $2,038, the 123.6 percent projection level, while a drop below $1,961 will signal the completion of the wave c.
Aluminum prices rose to a 16-month high as stockpiles tracked by the London Metal Exchange slumped amid signs of accelerating economic growth in China, the world’s biggest user of industrial metals. China’s gross domestic product rose 7.5 percent in the second quarter from a year earlier, topping the 7.4 percent estimate of analysts. In the U.S., confidence among homebuilders rose to the highest in six months. Aluminum, used in construction, autos and cans, has climbed 9.4 percent this year as LME inventories dropped to a 22-month low. “Some of the numbers we’ve seen out of China and the U.S. are pretty good, and they’re supportive of the metals complex as a whole,” Mike Dragosits, a senior commodity strategist at TD Securities in Toronto, said in a telephone interview. “The market is...
Hindalco Industries rose 2.42% to Rs 186.05 at 12:29 IST on BSE, with the stock extending gains triggered by a foreign brokerage upgrading the stock to buy from underperform. Meanwhile, the S&P BSE Sensex was almost unchanged at 25,550.95. On BSE, so far 6.93 lakh shares were traded in the counter as against average daily volume of 11.83 lakh shares in the past one quarter. The stock hit a high of Rs 186.70 so far during the day, which is a 52-week high for the counter. The stock hit a low of Rs 180.70 so far during the day. The stock hit a 52-week low of Rs 83.05 on 7 August 2013. The stock had outperformed the market over the past one month till 16 July 2014, surging 12.79% compared with the Sensex's 1.43% rise. The scrip had also outperformed the market in past one quarter, jumping...
LME aluminium is expected to rise to $1,999 per tonne, as it has broken above a resistance at $1,961. The resistance was provided by the 76.4 percent Fibonacci projection level of an upward wave c that developed from the June 12 low of $1,836. The next resistance will be at 1,999, the 100 percent projection level. A sudden drop to $1,957 will signal a false break above $1,961, and a bearish target at $1,937, the 61.8 percent projection level, will be established.
Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba), one of the leading aluminium smelters in the world, announced the appointment of Abdul Rahman Janahi as the new Director of Administration. Mr. Janahi joined the company in 1976 as an apprentice in Alba. In 2004 he was promoted to a Superintendent at the Calciner and Marine Department and then ultimately Manager of the Department. He has also worked as the Manager in the Carbon 1 & 2 Department and most recently was promoted to Senior Manager Human Resources in 2013. Over the past year he was given the opportunity to be Acting Director of Administration as part of his career development plan. Mr. Janahi is a graduate of the Jordanian Royal Air Force and received a number of certificates in management and leadership. Currently, he is pursuing his MBA from...
Aluminum prices rose to a 13-month high as inventories tracked by the London Metal Exchange extended a slump to the lowest since 2012. Stockpiles have dropped 8.6 percent this year to 4.99 million metric tons. Orders to withdraw aluminum account for 59 percent of inventories, compared with 43 percent at the end of 2013. Prices have climbed 8.9 percent in 2014. “A large proportion of the stockpile is still not available to the general market,” Edward Meir, an analyst at INTL FCStone in New York, said in a report. Aluminum for delivery in three months advanced 0.9 percent to settle at $1,960 a ton at 5:51 p.m. on the LME. Earlier, the price touched $1,967.25, the highest since June 7, 2013. Inventories dropped for the 10th straight session to the lowest since Sept. 13, 2012.
Switzerland-based Trafigura has launched an online store in India to sell aluminium, copper and other metals, seeking a slice of the $8 billion market and becoming the first big commodities trader to cater to hordes of small manufacturers dotting the country. Trafigura, co-founded by French billionaire Claude Dauphin, said it has been drawn in by India's primary metals market that is forecast to grow at up to 8 per cent a year. Small and medium businesses contribute to more than a third of the market, but most of them depend on traditional methods of procurement. Per-capita consumption of nearly all metals in India, Asia's third-largest economy, is far below world levels. The online store, named Lykos, will sell consignments of 1 to 24 tonnes of aluminium, copper, lead, nickel, tin and...
LME aluminium is expected to drop to a support at $1,898 per tonne, as it failed to break a resistance at $1,961 again. The resistance is provided by the 76.4 percent Fibonacci projection level of an upward wave c that developed from the June 12 low of $1,836. The July 14 high of $1,954.50 is lower than the July 9 high of $1,959, indicating a reversal of the uptrend or at least an extended correction from $1,959. The second leg of the correction could have started towards the 38.2 percent projection level at $1,898. A break above $1,961 will open the way towards $1,999, the 100 percent projection level. The views expressed are his own. No information in this analysis should be considered as being business, financial or legal advice. Each reader should consult his or her own professional...
Yunnan Aluminum Co., reported a loss of 290-298 million yuan ($47-48 million) or 0.188-0.194 yuan per share during the first half of 2014, the company said in its H1’s financial report. During the same period last year, the company posted a loss of 128.68 million yuan or 0.084 yuan per share. The bigger loss for H1 2014 was due to tumbled aluminum prices during the report period, the company said.
Some aluminum producers in Guizhou, Gansu, Henan and Guangxi are now restarting production after local governments introduced stimulus measures, but China’s aluminum market is not expected to suffer immediate impact from those resumptions in the short term, Shanghai Metals Market foresees. At present, some 700,000-tpy, one third of China’s idled aluminum capacity, is scheduled to resume production soon, SMM leant. Nevertheless, this restarting of idled capacity is proceeding more slowly than as markets had expected. Cash-starved smelters and similarly strapped local governments are finding it difficult to collect sufficient funding to support massive capacity restarts. Moreover, the preferential power rates promised by local governments remain subject to negotiations with power grid...
Russia's Rusal, the world's largest aluminium producer, is unlikely to start production at its Siberian Boguchansk aluminium project in 2014, the Energy Ministry said on Tuesday. Rusal, led by Russian tycoon Oleg Deripaska, has already delayed the launch of the 588,000 tonne-per-year Boguchansk smelter several times due to weak aluminium prices. The project, also known as BEMO, includes an aluminium smelter and a hydropower plant. It is being financed by Rusal and Russian state-controlled hydroelectric power producer Rushydro. The ministry said in a statement a recent visit by officials including deputy energy minister Vyacheslav Kravhenko showed the Boguchansk hydropower plant was almost ready but the aluminium smelter was not completely ready, "which raises doubts in its launch in the...
LME aluminium may rise more to $1,961 per tonne, as it has pierced above a resistance at $1,937. The resistance is provided by the 61.8 percent Fibonacci projection level of an upward wave c that developed from the June 12 low of $1,836. This wave has been interrupted by a higher resistance at $1,961, the 76.4 percent level, but it is capable of travelling to $1,999, the 100 percent level. With aluminium testing $1,837 again, the wave c could have resumed towards $1,961. The views expressed are his own. No information in this analysis should be considered as being business, financial or legal advice. Each reader should consult his or her own professional or other advisers for business, financial or legal advice regarding the products mentioned in the analyses.
