EUROPEAN MORNING BRIEF 13/04: Nornickel ‘unlikely’ to be affected by US sanctions; Rio Tinto set to benefit from US Ali squeeze; US copper, brass scrap prices

Good morning from Metal Bulletin’s offices in Shangai as we bring you the latest news and pricing stories on Friday April 13.

Tracking the rally seen on the London Metal Exchange in the previous session, aluminium prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange pushed higher during Asian morning trading on Friday.

A bout of panic buying in response to the sanctions placed on Russian aluminium producer UC Rusal pushed the LME’s three-month aluminium price to a 10-year high of $2,331 per tonne on Thursday.

Check Metal Bulletin’s live futures report here.

LME snapshot at 02.53am London time
Latest three-month LME Prices
  Price ($ per tonne)  Change since yesterday’s close ($)
Copper 6,837.50 16.5
Aluminium 2,290.50 -34.5
Lead 2,342.50 9.5
Zinc 3,124 30
Tin 20,965 65
Nickel 13,975 260

SHFE snapshot at 09.53am Shanghai time
Most-traded SHFE contracts
  Price (yuan/t)  Change since yesterday’s close (yuan)
Copper  50,530 -90
Aluminium 14,575 250
Zinc 23,565 -60
Lead 18,305 -170
Tin  143,480 320
Nickel  103,890 1,740

Russian nickel producer Norilsk Nickel (Nornickel), which is partly owned by UC Rusal, is unlikely to be affected by sanctions imposed by the United States and thus its production should continue to be deliverable to the LME, legal and trade sources said on Thursday.

Rio Tinto plc is in a position to take advantage of a current squeeze in aluminium supply in the US, through both its Canadian smelters and other foreign supply, according to the top executive of the company’s aluminium division.

Some copper scrap and brass scrap prices in the US have increased while competition for certain grades remains fierce.

Chinese molybdenum prices weakened this past week despite healthy demand from downstream markets.

Metal Bulletin’s battery raw materials team answers some of the key questions raised during our recent web seminar, discussing electric vehicle subsidies, battery chemistries and raw material supplies.

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