Platts
Spot prices of Europe aluminum alloy dip again in sluggish market
Edited by : AL CIRCLE
3 min read
Spot prices of standard grade aluminum alloy pulled back by a further Eur20/mt ($26/mt) in Europe this week as sluggish demand and good supply weighed on the market.
"It's quiet as there are so many holidays across Europe this week," said a Polish aluminum alloy producer.
"Prices have come down a bit and it's very inactive. We've hit the November depression," said a German seller, who added that buyers were continuing to buy month to month as they were afraid prices would slip further.
A European trader said that with parts of Germany closed October 31 [Day of Reformation] and November 1 [All Saints Day] there had been very few inquiries on the market.
Throughout the month of October the Platts physical spot assessment of the key aluminum alloy -- standard grade 226 -- fell by Eur60/mt ($78/mt) to Eur1,690-1,740/mt delivered Germany, including 30 days' credit.
There were few deals reported this week but market players expect more buying action next week as a number of diecasters seek November and December supplies. A key automotive tender for Q1 2013 material, which is scheduled at the start of December, is expected to give a good indication on future spot prices.
One European consumer said he had purchased his requirements for November and December at Eur1,690/mt delivered.
"There's definitely some softness in demand and suppliers are keen to sell. We got this material at Eur60 lower than our October/September tonnes," he said.
A German producer said he had sold two to three small lots of 226 at Eur1,710-1,720/mt delivered Germany, while a trader said market prices had fallen to around Eur1,690-1,700/mt.
Polish alloy was on offer at Eur1,730-1,740/mt delivered Europe as "Eur1,700/mt was too low," said the producer.
The lack of competitively priced aluminum scrap in Europe is continuing to squeeze margins, sources said.
"Scrap prices came down a bit in October [mainly because of lower primary aluminum on the LME] but not in the same way as 226 ingot has," said a German alloy producer.
A second German alloy producer said it was difficult to get the right quantity of scrap as much was exported to China: "There are a few export dealers who pay very high prices for scrap for Asia, which means we can't buy in Germany at the 'market level' and at the same time we must sell under the market price for our finished ingot."
Scrap dealers watch the LME's primary aluminum contract. The cash settlement price for primary aluminum was $1,882.50/mt October 31, down from $1,907/mt a week earlier on October 24 and off $187.50 from $2,070/mt four weeks earlier on October 3.
Aluminum alloy's cash settlement price on the LME was $1,780.50/mt October 31, down from $1,781/mt a week ago and $144.50 lower than $1,925/mt four weeks earlier.
"It's quiet as there are so many holidays across Europe this week," said a Polish aluminum alloy producer.
"Prices have come down a bit and it's very inactive. We've hit the November depression," said a German seller, who added that buyers were continuing to buy month to month as they were afraid prices would slip further.
A European trader said that with parts of Germany closed October 31 [Day of Reformation] and November 1 [All Saints Day] there had been very few inquiries on the market.
Throughout the month of October the Platts physical spot assessment of the key aluminum alloy -- standard grade 226 -- fell by Eur60/mt ($78/mt) to Eur1,690-1,740/mt delivered Germany, including 30 days' credit.
There were few deals reported this week but market players expect more buying action next week as a number of diecasters seek November and December supplies. A key automotive tender for Q1 2013 material, which is scheduled at the start of December, is expected to give a good indication on future spot prices.
One European consumer said he had purchased his requirements for November and December at Eur1,690/mt delivered.
"There's definitely some softness in demand and suppliers are keen to sell. We got this material at Eur60 lower than our October/September tonnes," he said.
A German producer said he had sold two to three small lots of 226 at Eur1,710-1,720/mt delivered Germany, while a trader said market prices had fallen to around Eur1,690-1,700/mt.
Polish alloy was on offer at Eur1,730-1,740/mt delivered Europe as "Eur1,700/mt was too low," said the producer.
The lack of competitively priced aluminum scrap in Europe is continuing to squeeze margins, sources said.
"Scrap prices came down a bit in October [mainly because of lower primary aluminum on the LME] but not in the same way as 226 ingot has," said a German alloy producer.
A second German alloy producer said it was difficult to get the right quantity of scrap as much was exported to China: "There are a few export dealers who pay very high prices for scrap for Asia, which means we can't buy in Germany at the 'market level' and at the same time we must sell under the market price for our finished ingot."
Scrap dealers watch the LME's primary aluminum contract. The cash settlement price for primary aluminum was $1,882.50/mt October 31, down from $1,907/mt a week earlier on October 24 and off $187.50 from $2,070/mt four weeks earlier on October 3.
Aluminum alloy's cash settlement price on the LME was $1,780.50/mt October 31, down from $1,781/mt a week ago and $144.50 lower than $1,925/mt four weeks earlier.
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