NEWS
US Aluminum Premiums Climb to 43 Month HighJanurary 8, 2009 / Aluminum Foil/Sheet
North American spot aluminum premiums continue to race upward, grazing 43 month highs in the new year as reduced supply and increased demand create a feeling of tightness in the domestic market.
Fewer US imports of aluminum products are one factor behind the supply side tightness in the domestic market. Russia a top supplier of aluminum material and Venezuela’s state owned producers have been curbing their North American imports in recent quarters. Even as supply continues to dwindle in the North American market, demand for aluminum is growing stronger every day.
Business has picked up over the holidays and hasn’t slowed down since. Traders have seen an up-tick in interest in the first week of the year. We’ve had good demand. Even at the beginning of the year people are kind of restocking and responding to their orders, so it’s been decent demand the trader said. “I think the growth level is coming back slowly and we’re going to see improved volumes.
Today’s tighter supply and stronger demand would normally drive prices on the LME higher, but sources said it is fund money, not fundamentals, currently supporting the price. Three month aluminum closed second ring trade at $2337.50 per tonne Thursday, up 3.5% from $2,259 .00 at the start of the week. The LME is going on a nice run. At these levels, it’s questionable whether people can restart and make money or not. If Alcoa Inc restarts in Tennessee, if Ormet fires back up some potlines, that will put a dent in the premium market.
Excerpts from American Metal Market, January 8, 2010
Aluminum mills’ upturn in orders signals bottomJune 10, 2009 / Aluminum Foil/Sheet
North American aluminum mills reported a slight but significant uptick in orders in May from the previous month, suggesting that the market might have reached bottom after nearly two quarters of slackening demand. "We are finally seeing some stabilization, some signs of maybe an increase," one aluminum trader said.
Extruded products led the charge with orders up 5.3% in May over April. Sheet and plate orders were also on the rise in May. Orders for domestic can stock increased 2.6% in May, with U.S. and Canadian aluminum mills reporting a 3% increase in demand from April. "(Aluminum’s) doing really well. This has been a sharp, sharp spike and it’s consolidating really nicely," one LME ring trader said.
"The U.S. government is spending money on infrastructure projects and that might be beginning to feed through to aluminum demand, but I still think recovery is a bit tenuous at the moment. The best we can say is there’s been a bottoming out – we’re at the end of a destocking phase," David Wilson, director of metals research at Societe Generale, said.
Aluminum stocks rose a net of 2,375 tonnes, taking total inventories in LME-approved warehouses to 4,277,775 tonnes as of Tuesday morning.
Excerpts from American Metal Market, June 10, 2009
Aleris hits back at the shareholder over financingMarch 12th, 2009 / Aluminum Foil/Sheet
Aleris International, Inc., a Beachwood, Ohio-based producer of aluminum sheet and ingot from scrap, squared off against its lone shareholder Wednesday, offering arguments to a bankruptcy court supporting the structure of proposed Chapter 11 financing for the company during its reorganization.
TPG Capital, based in Fort Worth, Texas, is the sole owner of Aleris’ stock. If the dispute delays court approval of interim financing arrangements, Aleris might find it harder to emerge from Chapter 11 in good shape.
Aleris has rescheduled a hearing to approve its $1.075-billion debtor-in-possession bankruptcy loan until March 16th. Until the sum is approved, the court has given Aleris permission to draw some funds to keep the company running.
Excerpts from American Metal Market March 12, 2009
Aluminum Benefiting From Substitution: Evans.December 1st, 2006 / Aluminum Foil/Sheet
The aluminum market is benefiting from increased substitution out of copper and steel-based products in the wake of soaring prices, according to Richard B. Evans of Alcan Inc., Montreal. In the past few years and especially more recently, aluminum has benefited at the expense of steel and copper as those metals experienced enormous price jumps. The cable business is faring well as manufacturers substitute out of copper into aluminum. There also has been substitution into aluminum for cans in Europe, away from steel, and aluminum penetration rates also are beginning to pick up in the automotive industry again despite an overall slowdown in the sector.
Slowdowns in the U.S. auto and construction markets have been balanced by demand from China. Currently, China is where the growth is. China’s 7.4-kilogram-per-capita aluminum use compares with between 20 and 30 kg for most Western nations.
Excerpts from American Metal Market. November 30, 2006
Stainless Centers Keep a Lid on Stocks; Demand is StrongNovember 15th, 2006 / Stainless Steel
Unlike the carbon side of the steel industry, stainless service centers are keeping tight reins on inventory, though mills aren’t limiting production. Executives at the stainless service centers say they’re keeping a smaller inventory than normal. The smaller inventories are not because of a lack of demand, but the surcharge cost. Centers say keeping too much inventory on hand can be dangerous to the bottom line if nickel prices take a dive and the metal can’t be sold for as much as it was purchased. Right now, mangers are buying what they need and are not taking on any long positions.
The stainless mills’ December surcharges jumped about 10 cents a pound as a result of an increase in the cost of nickel.
Excerpts from American Metal Market. November 9, 2006.
Copper Scrap Prices Decline as Offshore Sales Lose SteamNovember 15th, 2006 / Copper Foil/Sheet
Prices for higher grades of copper scrap have edged lower as primary metal on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange comes under downward pressure and a pickup in overseas demand fails to meet expectations. The brass ingot makers’ No. 1 and No. 2 copper scrap fell 3 cents across the East and Midwest. Prices for most of the lower grades have not changed significantly as demand from Chinese consumers holds steady. But despite flashes of aggressive buying, traders said the demand hasn’t yet reached forecast levels. The downturn in the automotive and housing industries continues to reduce demand for copper-based products.
Excerpts from American Metal Market. October 31, 2006
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