Metals Industry News

Discouraging news from China over the “phase one” trade deal with the United States has led to less risk appetite, which for now is affecting the broader markets more than the metals, which were broadly firmer on Thursday November 21.

Base metals prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mixed during the morning trading session on Thursday November 21 after trade headlines continued to cast doubts on the likelihood of a near-term deal between China and the United States.

Copper miner Freeport-McMoRan and Chinese smelter Jiangxi Copper have agreed 2020 full-year contractual treatment and refining charges (TC/RCs) at $62 per tonne / 6.2 cents per lb, Fastmarkets learned on Thursday November 21.

Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday November 20 that are worth another look.

A summary of London Metal Exchange warrant premiums from across the globe for the week to Wednesday November 20.

The three-month nickel price on the London Metal Exchange continued to fall at the close of trading on Wednesday November 20, with continued selling pressure and supportive forward spreads prompting the metal’s lowest close since July.

The spot tin market is reportedly slow in all regions despite talk of forthcoming production cuts to tackle excess supply.

Fastmarkets’ US zinc premium was unchanged in the week to Tuesday November 19 from a week earlier due to the persistent backwardation in the metal’s forward curve despite record lows in the stocks registered to the London Metal Exchange in the United States.

The nickel briquette premium in the United States rose for the second consecutive week amid enlivened spot activity in the week to Tuesday November 19, while premiums for all other grades in China and Europe remained unchanged on slack demand.

Over 90% of copper scrap products currently allowed into China could be eligible for renaming as recyclable copper raw materials next year, a senior representative of China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association's (CMRA) recycling metal branch told delegates at Asia Copper Week in Shanghai.

Spot business in the global copper markets was subdued in the week ended Tuesday November 19, with low buying interest pushing the Shanghai premiums lower, while both United States and European market participants are now turning their attention to long-term supply contract negotiations.

The three-month price of aluminium traded on the London Metal Exchange was little changed during the morning session on Wednesday November 11 despite an inflow of 13,725 tonnes of the metal into exchange warehouses as of 9am on the same day.

Aluminium premiums in Europe and the United States declined further in the week ended Tuesday November 19, with the market under increasing pressure from weak demand and the backwardation in London Metal Exchange spreads.

Base metals prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mostly up during the morning trading session on Wednesday November 20, with the complex finding slight support from improved investor confidence following reports that China’s central bank will loosen monetary policy to support economic growth.

Copper smelters will slow capacity expansions if market terms for copper concentrates fall to reflect a potential market deficit, Jiangxi Copper's Yuanfeng Xu said at Fastmarkets’ Asia Copper Conference in Shanghai on Wednesday November 20.

Copper smelters will slow capacity expansions if market terms for copper concentrates fall to reflect a potential market deficit, Jiangxi Copper's Yuanfeng Xu said at Fastmarkets’ Asia Copper Conference in Shanghai on Wednesday November 20.

Assuming stable growth in copper demand, the world is lacking investment in new mine projects amid expansion in smelting capacity, with a large gap seen in the mined copper balance over the next decade, according to Anglo American’s base metals chief.

Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Tuesday November 19 that are worth another look.

A summary of base metals premiums from across the globe for the week to Tuesday November 19.

Next year will be a “transitional year” for the nickel market ahead of a shift into a structural deficit in 2021, Denis Sharypin, head of market intelligence at Norilsk Nickel, told delegates at Fastmarkets’ International Ferro-alloys Conference in Budapest, Hungary, this week.