Asian aluminium premiums are facing more pressure ahead of Q4 talks. CRU’s Asia CIF aluminium premium is now USD 202 per tonne, well below the USD 395 per tonne Main Japanese Port (MJP) Q3 benchmark. MJP Q4 offers have also dropped sharply. They fell from USD 325 per tonne in early September to USD 245–260 per tonne as the new quarter approaches. This shows weaker sentiment in the market. Aluminium premiums are under pressure across Asia, especially in Korea, Malaysia and Taiwan. These markets are more exposed to spot price changes, so premiums can move quickly when supply or demand changes. Explore the production, demand and consumption forecasts of bauxite and alumina in our report: " Global Bauxite & Alumina Market Forecast to 2036: Supply–Demand, Trade Flows & Price Outlook " Premiums...
Rio Tinto is connecting its Kitimat aluminum production with a new British Columbia-based supply chain through a long-term agreement with RevoCast Aluminum Billets Ltd., under which aluminum from BC Works will be combined with recycled aluminum to produce billet for North American manufacturers. Announced on September 28, the agreement gives Rio Tinto exclusive marketing rights for aluminum billet produced at RevoCast’s newly commissioned Langley casting facility. The operation combines primary aluminum from BC Works with recycled aluminum processed by RevoCast. Explore the production, demand and consumption forecasts of bauxite and alumina in our report: “ Global Bauxite & Alumina Market Forecast to 2036: Supply–Demand, Trade Flows & Price Outlook ” The deal, however, will not change...
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China's Ministry of Land and Resources Monday suspended land applications for new projects in the aluminum, cement, steel and glass sectors with immediate effect due to surplus capacity in these industries. "For new projects involving adding new capacities, all land use pre-qualification applications will be rejected," the ministry said in a statement on its website. "There will be no preferential polices for land use and mined resources for industries with serious surpluses. MLR will also put more vigorous efforts into monitoring and combating illegal land use," it said. China in December 2011 targeted limiting refined copper, aluminum, lead and zinc output to 6.5 million mt/year, 24 million mt/year, 5.5 million mt/year and 7.2 million mt/year, respectively, in its 12th Five-Year Plan...
Oman will host a number of high level meetings and events related to Aluminium industry early next year. The Gulf Aluminium Council Dinner which is now considered to be the main gathering of senior executives and Board members of Aluminium producers from the Gulf and other parts of the world as well as executives from industries that have business association with Aluminium industry such as power generation manufacturers, suppliers, bankers and traders will be getting together on the 05th February at the Al Bustan palace hotel. This prestigious dinner is by invitation only and takes place in one of the Gulf States hosted by Gulf Aluminium Council; Sohar will be the main sponsor for 2014 dinner along with other smelters in the Gulf and oversees. During the week, the Board of Directors of...
JW Aluminum Company (“JW Aluminum”) announced today that it has posted its 2013 Quarterly Report for the quarter ended September 28, 2013 on JW Aluminum’s secure investor website at 11:00 PM Eastern Time on Monday, November 11, 2013. The quarterly report is being furnished pursuant to the Indenture governing JW Aluminum’s 11.50% Senior Secured Notes due 2017 (the “Notes”). The quarterly report will be made available to holders and beneficial owners of the Notes, qualified prospective investors in the Notes, and certain security analysts and market makers. JW Aluminum will post all of its annual reports, quarterly reports and current reports that are required to be delivered pursuant to the Indenture governing the Notes on JW Aluminum’s secure investor website maintained by Intralinks. JW...
The impending shutdown of an aluminum smelting operation in Ohio will have an impact on American Electric Power's electricity sales next year. AEP President and CEO Nick Akin is scheduled to speak Nov. 12 at the 48th Annual Edison Electric Institute Financial Conference in Orlando, Fla. In preparation for Akin's speech, AEP posted its 2013 Fact Book to its website. In its projections for 2014, AEP said it expects sales to industrial customers to be 2.3 percent less next year compared with this year. Excluding the impending shutdown of the Ormet Corp. smelting operation at Hannibal, Ohio, across the Ohio River from New Martinsville, WV, industrial sales will be up about 1.1 percent next year, according to the fact book. Total AEP sales — industrial, commercial and residential — next year...
The Management of Aluminium Smelter Company of Nigeria (ALSCON) says the company has executed N23.25 million water projects in Ikot Abasi Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom. The company’s Director of Public/Government Relations, Mrs Tatyana Smirnova, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ikot Abasi. She said that the amount was used in executing 15 water projects in different communities in the local government area. “We have executed 15 water projects in Ikot Abasi villages to provide clean and potable water which amounted to N23.25 million,’’ Smirnova said. The director said that about 10,000 people had benefited from the water projects. She also told NAN that the company had embarked on sale of obsolete assets in order to get additional revenue for...
United Co. Rusal (486)’s quarterly loss narrowed from the previous three months after the world’s largest aluminum producer shut unprofitable plants and cut costs. The net loss shrank to $172 million in the third quarter from $458 million in the second, Moscow-based Rusal said today in a statement. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization reached $130 million, in line with the $129.8 million average of six analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. The year-earlier loss was $118 million. Slowing global economic growth has eroded demand for aluminum, dragging down prices for the metal used in cars, aircraft and drink cans. Supply of the metal is outpacing demand for a seventh consecutive year and will remain in surplus until at least 2018, Morgan Stanley...
Refined aluminum inventories at Shanghai Futures Stock Exchange warehouses fell last week, as investors shift from aluminum to copper stocks, a Chinese industry expert said Monday. Aluminum stocks at the Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Shanghai and Guangdong warehouses in China totaled 199,260 mt as of November 8, according to SHFE figures released that day. That is down by 11,055 mt from November 1, and also sharply lower from levels seen in early September, when stocks were recorded at 288,764 mt on September 6. "Investors are transferring their capital from aluminum stocks to copper stocks," Jack Yeung, a business professor with City University of Hong Kong, said Monday. "The mainland Renminbi money supply is tightening with rising bank interest. This encourages copper hedging," "The London Metal...
The North American October net new aluminum mill order index rose 11.9% from September, according to the Aluminum Association. New mill orders increased 1.1% from October 2012, while the year-to-date index is down 3.5%, the group said in Friday report. October plate orders fell 13.6% from September and were down 10.4% from October 2012 levels. October sheet orders were up 16.7% from September and 5.8% above the year-ago period. October orders of extruded products rose 11.3% from September and were up 10% from a year ago. Foil orders last month jumped 30.5% from Septemeber and were 16.7% above those of October 2012, the report said. Orders of domestic can stock increased 15% from September and were down 10.3% from October 2012. October orders of export can stock fell 15.2% from September,...
Vale SA (VALE), the world’s biggest iron ore exporter, plans to sell its stake in aluminum-maker Norsk Hydro ASA (NHY) for as much as $1.8 billion, about half the holding’s value when the Brazilian company acquired it in 2011. Vale expects to sell as much as 447.7 million shares, or all its 22 percent stake in Oslo-based Hydro, the Rio de Janeiro-based company said yesterday in a regulatory filing. The miner is selling assets, putting projects on hold and focusing on its more profitable iron-ore business in a bid to recover profit margins after commodity prices fell. In September, it sold stakes in a cargo unit for about 2.7 billion reais ($1.2 billion) to Japan’s Mitsui & Co. and a Brazilian government fund after $1.47 billion of asset sales last year, including a coal mine in Colombia...
Regional aluminium premiums should gradually decrease to levels last seen 18 to 24 months ago – or even four to five years ago – due to the new London Metal Exchange warehouse policies, Philip Martens, Novelis chairman and ceo, said. “Over time, I think you will see a moderation of regional premiums. But it won’t happen overnight,” Novelis said on November 11 in an exclusive interview with Metal Bulletin sister publication AMM. The Atlanta-based aluminium roller and recycler generally passes through regional premiums in North America and Europe and should be unaffected by moves either way in those markets, Martens said. The main impact likely will be felt in Asia, where Novelis is exposed to Japanese premiums, which have increased sharply, while its competitors in China do not face the...
Goldman Sachs Group Inc.'s controversial Romulus-based aluminum warehousing operation, Metro International Trade Services LLC, faces new rule changes to cut wait times for metal delivery that could challenge its profitability. The London Metal Exchange, which oversees the trading of metal futures, issued the new rules last week, forcing warehouses like Metro's to reduce wait times for delivery of purchased metal to 50 days from as long as 18 months. The LME's new rules stem from growing concerns over market-traded aluminum and its effect on manufacturing. Starting in August, Metro International became the center of at least 20 ongoing civil antitrust lawsuits and an investigation by federal regulators. Beverage giants such as the Coca-Cola Co. and smaller aluminum manufacturers, some of...
LME aluminium has found a support at $1,806 per tonne and may rebound to $1,841. The support is provided by the 76.4 percent Fibonacci retracement on the rise from the Sept. 17 low of $1,775.50 to the Oct. 29 high of $1,905.75. It has been proved effective as the downtrend stopped to extend. The trend is expected to be reversed more as it could have completed its five-component waves. Most likely, the current rebound will reach $1,841, the 50 percent retracement. A break below $1,806 will open the way towards $1,775.50. 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...
A slew of investments in the Gulf’s aluminium industry are currently worth around $30bn but are likely to grow to $55bn by 2020, according to Frost & Sullivan. Venkatesan Subramanian, vice-president and leader of the research firm’s metals and minerals practice, said the Gulf is “poised to become a favoured destination and a global aluminium hub”, particularly as production levels are forecasted to fall in Europe and the United States. Aluminium production is a power-intensive process and Subramain said the Gulf has significant advantages in having access to cheaper energy sources. “This, coupled with availability of liquid and solid metal feed stock, land and above all great support by the respective Governments for investments (means) the aluminium industry is looking towards becoming a...
Aluminium consumers and some North American aluminium producers applauded sweeping changes announced on November 7 by the London Metal Exchange. Atlanta-based Novelis is encouraged by the development, chief supply chain officer Nick Madden said in a e-mail to AMM. “At first review, the rule changes outlined by the LME appear to be a significant step in the right direction, balancing the diverse input received during the consultation process,” he said. “I am optimistic that these changes will help to address this long-standing and complicated issue.” Montreal-based Rio Tinto Alcan also welcomed the LME’s warehousing rule changes. “We view this as an important step to address the recent market and economic forces that have combined to create a set of challenges in the warehousing aspects of...
National Aluminium Company (NALCO) will declare its second quarter (July-September) results today. Analysts expect strong improvement in operational performance during the quarter on account of lower base in a year ago period, but topline may shrink on lower volumes. According to a CNBC-TV18 poll, profit after tax is expected to rise over 30 times year-on-year to INR 146.4 crore as against net loss of INR 4.8 crore in the quarter gone by. Net sales are likely to decline 3 percent Y-o-Y to INR 1,535 crore in three-month period ended September 2013 due to lower volumes from aluminum business though realisation is better because of weak rupee. Analysts expect weaker rupee to drive higher aluminum and alumina realisations despite lower aluminum LME price. Aluminum They expect aluminum sales...
The Japanese owners of Southeast Asia’s only aluminum smelter are seeking an amicable resolution to a dispute with the Indonesian government over its takeover of the plant and are holding off on possible arbitration, Reuters reported. “Our negotiations are still continuing, but both parties think we should come to a conclusion as soon as possible,” Jun Yamamoto, general manager of the aluminum division at Sumitomo Chemical Co. Ltd., which represents a consortium of Japanese shareholders, said on Friday. “We still want to resolve this issue amicably, but we are also prepared to seek arbitration at ICSID [the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes] if no agreement is made,” he said. A week has passed since Indonesia took control of Sumatra-based PT Indonesia Asahan...
Now in its 143rd year, the The Materials Society (TMS) Annual conference and exposition meets at the San Diego Convention Centre, USA in 2014. The TMS 2014 Annual Meeting will present nearly 70 symposia covering a broad range of topics related to materials science and engineering. Although largely aimed at fundamental research, a large section of the programme is devoted to light metals including primary production of aluminium, refining of bauxite and electrode technology.
Alcoa Inc. (AA), the largest U.S. aluminum maker, said claims by some consumers that the metal is unavailable are incorrect. The claims are “a total myth,” Chief Executive Officer Klaus Kleinfeld said today in a presentation to investors in Cleveland, Ohio. None of its customers have stated to Alcoa that they have a shortage of metal supply, he said. The London Metal Exchange, the world’s biggest industrial-metals marketplace, said today it changed its rules to speed up withdrawals from warehoused stockpiles amid scrutiny from U.S regulators. Beverage maker MillerCoors LLC, a SABMiller Plc and Molson Coors Brewing Co. venture, said at a U.S. Senate subcommittee hearing in July that banks and other warehouse owners are manipulating aluminum supplies and slowing deliveries to boost prices....
