AL Circle Analysis: Import rise meets demand growth on aluminium extrusion chessboard
Aluminium’s downstream trade network is getting more fragmented as import dependence, changing end-use demand and trade-policy interventions reshape regional markets. From North America and Europe to Asia-Pacific, the aluminium industry is navigating a market where access to supply, competitive...
US industrial policy needs to be systematic, not just ad hoc – Part 2
Our current approach can win economic skirmishes, but not the geopolitical conflict. – Part 2 Impact #5 of ad hoc industrial policy: Failing to use all required tools Industrial policy is often caricatured as just tariffs and subsidies. Mis-framed debates that evaluate the merits of tariffs in...
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Alba 2014 net income surges 21%
2014 Industry Highlights: • Aluminium demand remains healthy with world consumption up by 8% year-on-year (YoY). Asian demand up by 10% YoY supported by a robust growth in China (+13% YoY) on the back of government stimulus and infrastructure investment. North America shows strong demand growth...
Private equity-backed aluminum processor Aleris scraps IPO plan
Aluminum processor Aleris Corp IPO-ARS.N filed on Thursday to withdraw its $500 million initial public offering, nearly three years after postponing the listing due to market conditions. Cleveland, Ohio-based Aleris had planned to list 31.3 million shares in a price range of $15 to $17. At the...
VHE announces new order of rodding plant machines
VHE of Iceland is delighted to announce a new order for rodding plant machines for a North American smelter. Three machines to be delivered mid-2015 comprise a stub straightener, a rod straightener and an anode-rod mating station. VHE has supplied a number of stub straighteners to smelters...
Crown Holdings reports higher earnings and positive future prospects
Crown Holdings, a leading producer in global metal packaging products, reported a 31% YoY growth in earnings spurred by the strong demand for beverage cans in developing markets like Turkey and South-East Asia. In its third quarter earnings of 2014, the company reported $1.36 earnings per share...
Ford to add 1,550 workers to the F-150 workforce
A total of 1,550 workers would be added to the workforce for building the new aluminium F-150 pick up truck as announced by Ford Motors on Wednesday. Ford also says that nearly 300-500 union-represented workers will be promoted from the entry-level stage to the veteran worker stage giving a...
Alcoa pleads for tax break extension for the two smelters in Washington
Alcoa seeks tax break extensions for the last two Alcoa plants remaining in Washington, one in Ferndale and Wenatchee, which employ a total number of 1,100 people. The number of aluminium smelters and the number of people employed in them have dropped drastically since 1980 when there were 10...
Sapa announces results for the fourth quarter 2014
Sapa AS, a Norwegian manufacturer of extruded aluminium profile and a 50/50 joint venture owned by Orkla Group and Norsk Hydro announces results for the fourth quarter 2014. Underlying EBIT for Sapa declined compared to the previous quarter, mainly due to lower seasonal demand. Underlying EBIT for...
River Metals Recycling yard achieves SHARP recognition
River Metals Recycling (RMR), headquartered in Crescent Springs, Kentucky, has announced that its Owensboro, Kentucky, scrap metal recycling facility has received the SHARP (Safety & Health Achievement Recognition Program) designation from the U.S. Department of Labor. RMR says that the Owensboro...
F-150 helps drive 15% jump in Ford's US sales
It appears to have been worth the wait for US car maker Ford. The company got off to a better start in its domestic market in 2015 than expected, thanks in part to a revamped version of the F-150, which has been the best-selling vehicle in North America for just over 3 decades. Ford's sales had...
Secondary aluminium alloy prices suffer despite strong Nasaac
A disparity is noticed in the scrap aluminium market where the secondary aluminium alloy prices have weakened despite the strong gains in the North American Special Aluminium Alloy Contract (Nasaac). Analysts believe that the dip in the prices is caused by an excessive supply of alternative ingots...
Secret ruggedness test for the aluminium F-150s proves beneficial
The secret ruggedness test for the aluminium F-150s at the Barrick Gold’s Bald Mountain and Cortez mines, Nevada, turned out beneficial for Ford with 35 new truck orders coming their way. The test started in 2011 and mine workers did not find anything different about the exterior of the car despite...
Aluminium-bodied cars receive “green” awards at Washington Auto Show
“Green” Awards were handed out to aluminium bodied cars at the Washington Auto Show’s Public Policy Day held between Jan 23 – Feb 1, 2015. The Award for the Green Car Technology was given to the aluminium-bodied Ford F-150, 2015 model while the BMW i8 received the Luxury Green Car of the year. "The...
Kaiser Aluminum Corporation announces a new five-year labor agreement
Kaiser Aluminum Corporation today announced that union members at the Company's Newark, OH and Spokane, WA ("Trentwood") facilities have ratified a new five-year labor agreement. The agreement which affects approximately 900 union members is effective on October 1, 2015 and extends through...
SMS Siemag to supply cold mill to Aleris for the production of prime quality aluminum coil for the automotive industry
Aleris, a world-leading aluminum coil manufacturer, has placed an order with SMS Siemag for the supply of a single-stand six-high aluminum cold rolling mill as key equipment for a major expansion of the facilities at its U.S. site in Lewisport, Kentucky. The new mill will be designed to produce up...
New Joining Manual supports rapid growth of aluminum in automotive
The Aluminum Association today released a comprehensive manual that details the range of joining technologies used for the assembly of aluminum parts in automotive applications. Developed in collaboration with the European Aluminium Association (EAA) and the Aluminum Extruders Council (AEC), the...
GE Capital aids Constellium for the acquisition of Wise
Constellium NV is to get a $400-million credit facility from GE Capital Corp to help fund the acquisition of Wise Metals Intermediate Holdings LLC. The group treasurer for Constellium, Mark Kirkland says, "GE Capital’s relationship with Wise and understanding of the metals industry made them a...
Upstate Shredding CEO takes large stake in Metalico
Adam Weitsman, CEO of Upstate Shredding, an Owego, New York-based scrap metal processing firm, has purchased roughly 5.6 million shares of stock in Metalico Inc., a Cranford, New Jersey-based scrap metal processing company. With the purchase, Weitsman has a 9.5 percent stake in the company, making...
Aluminum supplier ALPCO comes to Elkhart to reach next level of growth
An Ohio-based aluminum distributor with a longtime sales presence in Elkhart says it needed to open a facility here to grow. For more than 25 years, Aluminum Line Products Co. has shipped fabricated and raw sheets of aluminum from its sole production facility in Westlake, Ohio, to the many Elkhart...
