Mexico is approaching the final stages of negotiations with the United States on reducing tariffs on aluminum and steel products, with officials indicating that a deal could significantly lower the effective tariff burden on Mexican exporters. Luis Rosendo Gutiérrez, Mexico’s undersecretary of foreign trade, said talks had made progress during the National Auto Parts Industry congress. Discussions covering the automotive sector are targeting a 15% tariff, which could fall to an effective rate of around 4% to 5% after deductions linked to regional value content. The potential reduction would bring Mexico closer to tariff levels faced by competitors including Japan, South Korea and Germany, improving the position of Mexican suppliers in the US market. Explore the production, demand and...
CLSA expects the Odisha High Court’s dismissal of Vedanta Aluminium Metal’s bauxite petition to have a muted medium-term impact, despite a potential one-time liability and higher aluminium production costs. The Odisha High Court dismissed Vedanta Aluminium’s petition seeking bauxite supplies from Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC) at the historical rate of INR 1,000 (USD 10.38) per tonne. CLSA said the order could result in a one-time financial impact of up to USD 290 million, including interest, while also increasing the company’s aluminium production costs. The brokerage estimated OMC’s claim for historical dues at around INR 2,500 crore (USD 59.50 million) before tax, excluding interest. Including interest, the one-time impact could reach USD 290 million, equivalent to around 2.8 per cent...
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The Board of Directors of VHCL Industries Ltd at its meeting held on Monday, March 31, 2014, decided to consider the possibility of de-merging the Metal Division of the company into a separate entity in order to invite industry specific investment as well as unlock shareholder value. The metal division of the company has two on-going projects: - 36,000 MTPA Aluminum Alloy Plant, which is undergoing pre trials, and is expected to achieve commercial Production in a few weeks time. - 18,000 MTPA EOU project for production of Non-Ferrous alloys, which will soon start construction activity as the techno-economic feasibility of the same was approved by the Board. The Proposal outlined that the second phase expansion would require an investment to the tune of Rs. 400Cr. in fixed assets and...
Alcoa will hold a conference call on Tuesday, April 8 beginning at 5:00 p.m. EDT to discuss first quarter 2014 results and business developments. The conference call will be webcast live via Alcoa's website, with presentation materials available online. Conference Call Information Time: 5:00 – 6:00 p.m. EDT Hosts: Klaus Kleinfeld, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer William Oplinger, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Call: (866) 318-8619 + 1 (617) 399-5138 (International) Pass Code: 63314708 Webcast: Invest section of the Alcoa website to listen and view slides only. Presentation materials used during this meeting will be available for viewing at 4:30 p.m. at Alcoa website. Replay Information A replay of the call will be available from 10:00 p.m. EDT on April 8 until...
Aluminium prices fell 0.56 per cent to INR 105.65 per kg in futures trading today as speculators reduced their positions amid weak global cues. Besides, subdued demand in the domestic spot markets also weighed on the metal prices. At the Multi Commodity Exchange, aluminium for delivery in April eased by 60 paise, or 0.56 per cent, to INR 105.65 per kg in business turnover of 250 lots. Similarly, the metal for delivery in May traded lower by 45 paise, or 0.42 per cent, to INR 107.25 per kg in 3 lots. Market analysts said the weakness in aluminium at futures trade was mostly in tune with a downtrend in base metals at the London Metal Exchange after Chinese economic data showed weak recovery, lowering prospects for demand from the world's biggest consumer.
Aluminium prices could averatge $1880 per ton in 2015, rising to an average of $2075 per ton in 2015, according to Natixis in the Q1,2014 metals review. After years of chronic surplus, the global aluminium industry is going through a period of substantial change. In Russia and the west, producers continue to curtail unprofitable smelting capacity. In China, the growing influence of the price mechanism is likely to limit overcapacity in the aluminium industry. In Indonesia, the ban on exports of bauxite will deprive Chinese alumina producers of their main source of raw material. These three factors are expected to result in a further slowdown in global output growth. With demand for aluminium remaining strong, this is expected to push the market into a deficit for the first time since...
Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba) on March 31, 2014, launched a three-day programme on “Leadership Practices 360 Feedback Process” for all its Executives and Managers as part of the Executive Education series for 2014. Delivered by Prof. Richard Daft from Vanderbilt University, USA the “Leadership Practices 360 Feedback Process” will enable Alba’s leaders to identify their strengths and areas for improvement, and involves an intensive self-assessment and inputs from co-workers over the course of the programme. Commenting on this programme, Alba’s Chief Executive Officer, Tim Murray said: “At Alba, we believe that education plays a key role in the growth of our organisation. Executive Education is a critical part of our leadership strategy, which enables our management team to compete on the...
Thousands of protesters, who are members of the Nigeria Labour Congress, on Monday protested the shutdown of Aluminium Smelter Company of Nigeria plant in the Ikot Abasi, Ikot Abasi Local Government Area, Akwa Ibom State. The protesters, who blamed the organisation’s Russian management for the development, staged their protests on major streets in Uyo before moving down to the Government House. They said ALSCON’s shutdown was an act of economic sabotage by the management of the organisation. Chairman of the state NLC, Mr. Uyime Usoro, said shutting down the only smelting plant in West Africa was an act of economic sabotage as it was accompanied by massive retrenchment of workers. He lamented that the privatisation process of ALSCON had defeated the employment generation initiative of the...
Turkish metal products manufacturer Sahinler is interested in buying out the complete annual production of Montenegro's bankrupt aluminium firm KAP and could become a partner of Niksic-based Uniprom – the sole bidder for KAP's assets, Portalanalitika.me informed on March 28, quoting a report of broadcaster TVCG. The statement was made by Sahinler's executive manager Osman Sahin who held talks with Montenegrin economy minister Vladimir Kavaric together with Uniprom's owner Veselin Pejovic. Sahin said that in several years KAP could employ as many as 10,000 workers. He explained his company has two aluminium plants in Istanbul and Ankara and owns a port in the city of Bursa, as well as ships. The company has an annual turnover of more than EUR 1bn and a 40-year experience in the production...
Alcoa will maintain 750 jobs at its Massena West plant and train workers for high-demand, technical jobs under a deal announced Monday afternoon by Alcoa, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York Power Authority. The 750 jobs are down from the 900 agreed upon in 2008 that would allow the aluminum manufacturer to continue to receive low-cost power from the New York Power Authority. Also as part of the agreement, NYPA will temporarily reduce Alcoa’s hydropower supply contract of 478 megawatts while supplying enough energy to support operations at the West plant. The new agreement supplements a previous agreement that was reached in 2009 and amended in 2011. NYPA also is waiving two utility charges on Alcoa’s monthly power bills to “support the viability of the company’s Massena operations...
Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba)’s support towards encouraging cultural diversity in the Kingdom of Bahrain was reflected through its sponsorship of the Spring of Culture Festival 2014, which is ongoing during the months of March and April, 2014. Alba’s Chief Financial Officer, Ali Al Baqali and Acting Manager for Human Resources, Hamad Alshaibeh presented the cheque to the Executive Director, Corporate Services – EDB, Hayam AlAwadhi and Event Manager, Aseel Alshafeie. Commenting on the sponsorship of the Spring of Culture Festival 2014, Alba’s Chief Financial Officer, Ali Al Baqali said: “The Spring of Culture provides a wonderful opportunity to showcase Bahrain as an attractive tourist destination. Alba’s support for this event is not only a demonstration of our corporate social...
Aluminium prices fell 0.19 per cent to INR 103 per kg in futures trading today as speculators reduced exposure amid weak global trend. At the Multi Commodity Exchange, aluminium for delivery in March declined by 20 paise, or 0.19 per cent, to INR 103 per kg in business turnover of 17 lots. Similarly, the metal for delivery in the April contract traded lower by 15 paise, or 0.14 per cent, to INR 104.40 per kg in 74 lots. Analysts said speculators offloaded their positions in tandem with a weakness in metal at the London Metal Exchange and subdued domestic demand, mainly influenced aluminium prices at futures trade.
According to report of International Aluminum Institute (IAI), the global unwrought aluminum inventory in February totaled 1.17 million tons, which is lower than the revised 1.19 million tons in January. The figures were 1.28 million tons in the same month of 2013. Besides, all kinds of aluminum stocks were 2.19 million tons in February compared to 2.33 million tons in the same month of last year.
Aluminum: Monday’s review report is an excerpt from our weekly metals report. As of Friday close aluminum’s 3 month rolling forward contract ended the week at $1758, up by more than $20+ from its previous week’s close. At the MCX platform, the April futures contract ended the week at 104 from its previous week’s close. Aluminum and other metals have also moved higher during the week, except for Nickel. The LME index has also traded higher by 1%. During the week, we saw most of the asset classes outperforming, except in the US. The Asian markets have traded on a positive note followed by Europe while only the US markets have declined slightly, which might have supported the metal to trade on a positive note. From the inventory front as of Friday, there has been a decline of 27775 tons week...
The application of energy-saving dosing furnaces in aluminium foundries is best available technology today. Foseco is now able to supply a new, multi-part and highly insulating lining made of INSURAL, which is delivered ready to install and provides a high longevity. Installation of a new INSURAL lining can be done in 3 to 4 days with no ongoing hydrogen issues. While linings cast in situ have to be dried for several weeks before all the combined water is removed. Through the low wettability of INSURAL, the furnace cavity is easy to clean and the liquid metal is protected against unwanted impurities. In addition, due to the dry installation no sintering process is necessary and the good insulation properties lead to energy savings up to 17 %. Additional benefits are the extreme low...
Shipments of rolled-aluminum products by Japanese fabricators to domestic and overseas markets may increase to the highest level in four years as a weaker yen boosts exports, an industry group said. Shipments for the year beginning April 1 are expected to climb to 2 million metric tons, the largest volume since the year ended March 2011, the Japan Aluminium Association said in a report today. It will mark the second straight year of increase. The expansion will be led by a 23 percent increase in exports of flat-rolled products as a weak yen boosts the competitiveness of Japanese fabricators in markets such as China and Southeast Asia, it said. The yen has weakened 7.8 percent in the past year against the dollar. Aluminum for three-month delivery on the London Metal Exchange has dropped...
The aluminum industry plans to cut output again this year as producers seek to reduce excess capacity amid falling prices. United Co. Rusal PLC on Friday shelved plans to build a high-tech smelter in Siberia that would have created 3,000 jobs and been one of the company's key assets in the region. The world's largest aluminum producer said it would put on hold its Taishet smelter in Siberia's Irukutsh area, with an annual capacity of 750,000 metric tons, citing unfavorable market conditions and an effort to rationalize capacity. The Russian company also reported that its net loss for last year deepened to $3.2 billion. That included $1.92 billion in impairment and restructuring charges, in part related to the Taishet project. Rusal reported a net loss of $528 million in 2012. The company...
Alcoa disappointed traders with its fourth-quarter results but the share price has more than recovered as it prepares to reveal its first-quarter earnings on 8 April 2014. Alcoa is trading at $11.85, up nearly 11% since the company revealed worse-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings in January 2014. The Aluminium producer reported fourth-quarter earnings per share of 4 cents and revenue of $5.59 billion, while the market consensus was for 11 cents and $5.39 billion respectively. Its fourth-quarter revenue was below the third-quarter figure of $5.77 billion. Alcoa is trying to start afresh in 2014; it has put the bribery charges behind it and has incurred a number of write-downs over the years in relation to asset valuations. Like other companies in the mineral sector, it is adjusting to...
State Enterprises Minister Dahlan Iskan has named former director of PT Aneka Tambang as the president director of PT Indonesia Asahan Aluminium (Inalum). "Winardi was confirmed as the new president director of PT Inalum in a shareholders meeting several days ago. The post transfer will be done on Friday or Saturday," Dahlan clarified after a leadership meeting at PT Kliring Berjangka Indonesia here on Thursday. Dahlan noted that Winardi was not a new comer at a state-owned company as he used to be Operations Director of PT Aneka Tambang (Antam). He explained that Winardi was a great person as shown by his success in bringing PT Aneka Tambang to be among top state-owned companies. "He is a graduate of the Bandung Institute of Technology and one of the strong candidates for Antam president...
Prices of aluminium and other non-ferrous metals will remain low in near-term due to the muted demand on the back of uncertain macro-economic environment prevailing globally, ICRA said. "While prospects for the western economies have improved, concerns regarding slower growth of Chinese economy, largest consumer of base metals, have affected sentiments, leading to subdued price levels at the London Metal Exchange (LME)," ICRA's Senior Vice-President Jayanta Roy said in a release. Quite similar to the above would be the Indian story as well. The prices of base metal in India are influenced by import-parity prices. The movement of Indian rupee against US dollar would have a critical impact on the domestic prices in the coming weeks. According to Mr. Jayanta, though aluminium has a better...
