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...
Grow with
AL Circle
Rio Tinto Alcan recommends competitive energy rates to facilitate growth
Rio Tinto Alcan recommends that energy prices be made more competitive to bolster the growth of the aluminium industry in Quebec. During the Public Consultation on Energy Issues in Quebec, Rio Tinto Alcan proposed that Quebec's new energy policy must affirm the province's resolution to offer...
Aluminum distributor AA Metals Inc. to build new facility at Orlando
A local fabricated sheet metal distributor has some big plans for its Orlando headquarters — including more than tripling the amount of space it has right now and perhaps doubling its workforce. AA Metals Inc. last week bought a 12.8-acre industrial site in Jetport Industrial Park near Orlando...
North American aluminum shipments to slow this year
North American aluminum shipments are set to slow considerably this year, with an expected increase of 1% over 2012 levels, according to researcher Lawrence Capital Management. In a report released Thursday, the researcher said it is expecting shipments to hit 23.4 billion lb, following a rise of...
Pittsburgh-born Alcoa celebrates 125th birthday
Even in a city where the population is aging and centenarians are not all that uncommon, a 125th birthday is a rarity worth celebrating. Alcoa, the world's leading producer of primary and fabricated aluminum, observed the watershed on Monday, one day early. Alcoa was born on Oct. 1, 1888, as the...
Continued losses in shares of Noranda Aluminum
Shares of Noranda Aluminum traded at a new 52-week low today of $2.48. So far today approximately 254,000 shares have been exchanged, as compared to an average 30-day volume of 429,000 shares. Noranda Aluminum Holding Corp is an integrated producer of aluminum products, as well as rolled aluminum...
Ohio Public Utilities Commission approves modified Ormet power deal
The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio voted on Wednesday to approve Ormet Corp's revised power deal with energy supplier American Electric Power Co Inc, saving the U.S. aluminum producer from likely closure. The commission added, however, that it was modifying parts of Hannibal, Ohio-based...
Alcoa to fund internships with $1.25M as part of 125th anniversary
Alcoa Inc. will benefit from “a once in a lifetime shift” by the auto industry toward using more aluminum in its best-selling vehicles, CEO Klaus Kleinfeld said on Monday. “The big change is, aluminum has a leg up” on steel, Kleinfeld said in Alcoa's Corporate Center on the North Shore during the...
Quebec aluminum producers seek lower energy costs
Relying on hydroelectric power, the nine aluminum smelters in Quebec have reduced their carbon footprint to “the lowest in the world,” an industry spokesman told a provincial government commission studying energy options on Monday. But “a green ingot gives the industry nothing,” Jean Simard,...
Somerville Aluminum hosts Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno
In four-and-a-half months Somerville Aluminum turned a gutted 15,000-square-foot warehouse on County Line Road into it's new location, seven miles away from the borough where it was founded in 1950. It opened in June, but on Sept. 26 held a reception to celebrate the move to Branchburg. Longtime...
President Obama taps Alcoa Chairman and CEO to help advance US manufacturing
President Barack Obama has tapped Alcoa Chairman and CEO Klaus Kleinfeld to join the President's Advanced Manufacturing Partnership Steering Committee 2.0, part of a continuing effort to maintain US leadership in the emerging technologies that will create high-quality manufacturing jobs and enhance...
Highway Products Inc. offers light weight aluminum service bodies
Utility work trucks: Highway Products, Inc. manufactures Light Weight Aluminum Service bodies to meet the growing industry and customer demands for Green Fleets. The company has specialized in aluminum manufacturing since inception in 1980. Their Aluminum Service bodies are 45 per cent lighter than...
Crown Holdings trims Q3 Guidance citing weaker demand
Crown Holdings, Inc. reduced its third quarter earnings per share guidance to a range of $1.05 to $1.10 citing weaker-than-expected demand in European food cans and North American beverage can markets. Shares of the packaging company fell 4.5% to $41.50 in after-hours trading on Tuesday. Crown...
U.S. carmakers’ aluminium consumption may surpass European counterparts: Novelis
U.S. carmakers’ consumption of aluminum may surpass European counterparts in the next 12 months as new models using the metal come to market, according to Novelis Inc. Ford Motor Co. is among manufacturers rolling out new cars that substitute aluminum for heavier steel. Use of the lightweight metal...
Ormet's total losses increase to near $100 million
As it awaits a final regulatory decision that could decide its future, US aluminum producer Ormet Corp. continues to lose money and is fast approaching $100 million in total net losses since it filed for bankruptcy on February 25, according to court filings. In August, the Hannibal, Ohio-based...
North American August aluminum mill order index slips 3.5% year on year: trade group
The August North American net new aluminum mill orders index fell 3.5% year on year to 113.51, but was up 3.3% from July, according to the Aluminum Association's monthly report released Friday. Year-to-date, the new mill orders index was down 3.9%, the report said. August plate orders jumped 25.6%...
Aluminium extruders foresee automotive sector challenges
Aluminium extruders looking to benefit from expected growth in the US automotive sector will have to grapple with stepped-up standards, possible capacity constraints and new and often-demanding clients, industry executives said. Challenges range from receiving International Organisation for...
Rexam hosts “Cans for Cash” recycling event to help the environment and raise money for local charities
As one of the leading global beverage can makers, Rexam is committed to supporting recycling in its local communities. To that end, the Rexam Chicago office recently hosted its third annual "Cans for Cash recycling event to promote recycling and raise money for charity. Rexam partnered with United...
AMG N.V. begins a new phase of integration with AMG Services Aluminum
AMG N.V. begins a new phase of integration with AMG Services Aluminum that is intended to produce greater efficiency and customer service for the global aluminum industry. According to a recent announcement from AMG Services Aluminum and Advanced Metallurgical Group N.V., as reported by Reuters,...
